WORK AND PENSIONS

Pensioner Benefit Payments

Gwyneth Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on (a) the proposed method of payment of state benefit for pensioners who cannot access a bank account and (b) the timetable for the receipt of such benefit after 2005.

Andrew Smith: While over 90 per cent. of pensioners have bank or building society accounts, and nearly half of all pensioners already choose to be paid by Direct Payment, we of course recognise that there will be some whom we will not be able to pay in this way.
	We are presently consulting groups such as Age Concern, Help the Aged and the National Pensioners Convention about paying such pensioners by cheque.
	We plan to have this service in place from October next year.

Departmental Job Losses

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he next expects to meet staff representatives to discuss job losses in departmental offices in East Anglia.

Des Browne: Jobcentre Plus and the Pensions Service are modernising the service we provide to our customers. Staff movement between different roles is an ongoing feature of the development of these-new services. Ministerial colleagues and I meet the Department's trade union representatives from time to time. Managers and union representatives at all levels meet routinely to discuss staffing plans.

Savings Policy

John Randall: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the Government's policy on saving for retirement.

Malcolm Wicks: Our aim is to help people choose how they plan for retirement, how much they save and how long they keep working. Our immediate priority was to tackle pensioner poverty and we have, through the Pension Credit, both increased the amount individuals receive and also rewarded those who have saved. Through our Green Paper and Action on Occupational Pensions proposals we have sought to increase security, promote flexibility of provision and reinvigorate the pensions partnership. We want to give individuals real choices about the savings decisions they take through the provision of the right information and the right products—this we are doing through our informed choice programme and proposed suite of stakeholder products, as proposed in the Sandler review. The Government's overall objective is to promote secure and sustainable pensions provision for individuals.

Stakeholder Pensions

George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the take-up of stakeholder pensions.

Andrew Smith: Over one-and-a-half million stakeholder pensions have been sold since their introduction in April 2001; over half a million in the last 12 months for which figures are available. This is an encouraging start, and a sign of confidence in the product.

State Pension Reform

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on Government plans to reform state pensions.

Malcolm Wicks: We have done much to improve the State Pension. The introduction of State Second Pension focuses help on those with low to moderate earnings, and on qualifying carers and long term-disabled people who have broken work records.
	We have increased the basic State Pension by more than the RPI for the last three years. We have also guaranteed to increase the basic State Pension in future years by 2.5 per cent. or the increase in the September Retail Prices Index whichever is the higher.
	In addition, the new Pension Credit is designed to ensure that pensioners benefit from their savings. These initiatives will help provide greater security for tomorrow's pensioners.
	We will continue to look at sensible and affordable ways of improving the State Pension, such as giving a better deal to people who defer their State Pension.

Pension Credit

Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners the Government estimates will be receiving pension credit by 2006.

Malcolm Wicks: We are the first Government ever to set a take up target for any benefit and we aim to have at least 3 million pensioner households receiving Pension Credit by 2006.
	However, we want every pensioner to take up their entitlement. We have already written to 1.6 million pension households to tell them about Pension Credit and will be writing to the remainder by June 2004. In addition we are running a major advertising campaign on TV and in the press to familiarise, pensioners, their families and friends with Pension Credit and to encourage them to apply.

Pension Credit

Sally Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the implementation of the Pension Credit.

Malcolm Wicks: Around 1.9 million pensioner households on our systems are already being paid Pension Credit. This represents over two million individuals. Of the awards made, 1.15 million pension households (over 1.3 million pensioners) will get more than they would have before. We are contacting every pensioner household, and want all those who may be entitled, to take up Pension Credit.
	Anyone who applies by October 2004 will be able to receive payment from the start of the scheme or the first date they are entitled.
	Around half of all households are eligible for Pension Credit and stand to gain on average £400 a year (or around £7 a week).

Pension Credit

Bob Blizzard: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners are entitled to Pension Credit in Waveney constituency.

Malcolm Wicks: The information is not available in the format requested. However, an estimated 300,000 pensioner households are eligible for Pension Credit in the Eastern region.

Mr. Douglas Gowan

Richard Bacon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the latest position regarding a constituent, Mr. Douglas Gowan.

Maria Eagle: I wrote to the hon. Gentleman on 10 October 2003 as agreed at the Adjournment debate of 9 September 2003.

Child Support Agency

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the inter-relationship between the Child Support Agency and the benefits system.

Chris Pond: The Child Support Agency and Jobcentre Plus work closely together to provide customers with the best possible service.
	Jobcentre Plus staff gather information on behalf of the Child Support Agency to ascertain either the details of the non-resident parent or the reasons why a parent with care on benefit does not wish to apply for child support. In the latter case, Jobcentre Plus staff also decide whether she has good cause.
	Jobcentre Plus also collect maintenance by making deductions from non-resident parents' benefit payments.

CABINET OFFICE

Special Advisers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the total cost was of special advisers to the Office of the Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury in financial year 2002–03, broken down by (a) salary and related expenses and (b) other costs.

Douglas Alexander: The numbers of Special Advisers in each pay band by department and total salary costs were set out in the answer provided by the Prime Minister on 16 July 2003, Official Report, column 328W. Other costs cannot be separately identified from the running costs of the office as a whole without incurring disproportionate cost.

Special Advisers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office on how many occasions in financial year 2002–03 the special advisers to the Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury travelled abroad in an official capacity; which places were visited; and how much each visit cost.

Douglas Alexander: The special advisers to the Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury did not undertake any overseas travel in an official capacity in 2002–03.

Parliamentary Questions

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many Questions directed to him remain unanswered.

Douglas Alexander: At 15 October four Parliamentary Questions remained unanswered.

SOLICITOR-GENERAL

Iraq

Robert Marshall-Andrews: To ask the Solicitor-General pursuant to her answer to the hon. Member for Stone (Mr. Cash) of 17 March 2003, Official Report, column 515W, on Iraq, to what extent, in concluding that it was plain that Iraq had failed to comply with Resolution 1441, the Attorney-General relied upon facts and assertions contained in the Government dossier published in January as material to his conclusion and to the opinion he gave as to the authority to use force, specifying which such facts and assertions were so relied upon.

Harriet Harman: The Attorney-General did not rely at all on the Government dossier published on 30 January in reaching the conclusion that Iraq had failed to comply with resolution 1441 and in stating his view that a legal basis for the use of force existed in the combined effect of UN Security Council resolutions 678, 687 and 1441. However, it was material to that conclusion that there was intelligence evidence that the Iraqi authorities had intimidated scientists which UNMOVIC wished to interview; that rooms designated for such interviews had been bugged; and that some potential interviewees had been kept away from UNMOVIC by the Iraqi authorities and that there was evidence that Iraqi scientists had been intimidated into refusing interviews with UNMOVIC outside Iraq. These points were also covered in the section on interviews in chapter one of the dossier.

Iraq

Robert Marshall-Andrews: To ask the Solicitor-General pursuant to her answer to the hon. Member for Stone (Mr. Cash) of 17 March 2003, Official Report, column 515W, on Iraq, whether, in concluding that it was plain that Iraq had failed to comply with Resolution 1441, the Attorney-General relied upon the facts and assertions contained in Chapter 3 paragraphs (a) two to five, (b) six to seven, (c) eight to 11, (d) 12 to 13, (e) 14, (f) 15, (g) 16, (h) 18 to 23 and (i) 24 to 32 of the Government dossier published in September 2002 as material to his conclusion and to the opinion he gave as to the authority to use force.

Harriet Harman: The Attorney-General did not rely upon any facts or assertions contained in the Government dossier published in September 2002 as material to his conclusion set out in his statement of 17 March that Iraq had failed to comply with resolution 1441 and that a legal base for the use of force existed in the combined effect of UN Security Council resolutions 678, 687 and 1441.

WALES

Coroners Courts

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what the annual budget is for each coroner's court in Wales; and what percentage is ring-fenced to enable the provisions in the Welsh Language Act 1993 to be met.

Don Touhig: Coroners' courts are funded by local authorities through the settlement and as such a matter for the National Assembly for Wales.

European Year of Disabled People

Martin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what initiatives his Department (a) has undertaken and (b) is taking to commemorate 2003 as the European Year of Disabled People.

Don Touhig: The Wales Office does not have direct responsibility for specific programmes. However, my right hon. Friend and I recognise the importance of promoting the rights of disabled people and raising awareness of the contribution they make to society. On 4 September my right hon. Friend spoke at Remploy's awards ceremony, honouring employers in Wales who have led the way in the employment of disabled people.
	The Disability Unit within the Department for Work and Pensions has been working closely with the National Assembly to promote the European Year of Disabled People in Wales. Joint sponsorship from DWP and the European Commission has enabled 13 special European Year projects to run in Wales covering a wide range of issues.

ADVOCATE-GENERAL FOR SCOTLAND

Legislative Competence

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Advocate-General if she will place in the Library copies of communications her Department has had with the Scottish Executive on consideration by her office of the legislative competence of the Bills detailed in Annex 9 of the Scotland Office Departmental Report 2003.

Lynda Clark: Any such communications which take place between my Department and the Scottish Executive are confidential.

TRANSPORT

Essex Coastguard Service

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many full-time coastguards were employed by the Essex Coastguard Service on 1 September.

Tony McNulty: On 1 September, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) employed 33 full-time coastguards in Essex.

Biofuels

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps he is taking to ensure that the UK will meet the EU target for 2 per cent. of road transport to be fuelled by biofuels by December 2005; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: The European Union's Biofuels Directive requires member states to set their own indicative targets for sales of biofuels to be met in the years 2005 and 2010. The Government will be consulting early next year on the level of targets that might be appropriate for the UK, and on the steps that we might take to meet them.

Correspondence

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Totnes of 17 June concerning the Teenage Cycle Safety Campaign; and what the reasons are for the delay.

David Jamieson: I replied to the hon. Member on 7 July.

Flight Paths (Walthamstow)

Neil Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what altitude restrictions apply to aircraft on flight paths above Walthamstow; and how these have changed in the last five years.

Tony McNulty: pursuant to his answer, 14 October 2003, Official Report, c. 168–69W
	The airspace over all of Walthamstow above 2,500 ft has been classified as 'controlled' for many years. Over the southernmost quarter of Walthamstow the airspace has been controlled to ground level since the opening of London City Airport. Aircraft using Heathrow and City operate within this controlled airspace. Aircraft inbound to Heathrow will normally be above 5,000 ft.
	Over the remainder of my hon. Friend's constituency below 2,500 ft, helicopters and general aviation aircraft from smaller aerodromes can determine routes and altitudes according to their particular requirements. Such flights are subject to the Rules of the Air Regulations, notably Rule 5, which means most will be above 1,500 ft.
	There have been no changes to the airspace over Walthamstow in the last five years.

Unmanned Level Crossings

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what recent discussions he has had with the Health and Safety Inspectorate on Network Rail's proposals to close unmanned level crossings in Scotland;
	(2)  what recent representations he has received from organisations representing country pursuits regarding Network Rail's proposals to close unmanned level crossings in Scotland.

Tony McNulty: None. This is an operational matter for Network Rail.
	However, I understand that there are continuing discussions between the Health and Safety Executive, Network Rail, the Ramblers' Association, the Scottish Executive, Scottish Natural Heritage, local authorities and residents about Network Rail's policy of preventing unauthorised use of a small number of private level crossings in Scotland. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has drawn the attention of Network Rail's Chief Executive to the need for decisions to enforce restrictions at such crossings to be properly justified on safety grounds.

St Christopher House

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what percentage of the demolition waste from the demolition of St. Christopher House, London is being sent to landfill;
	(2)  to what uses the waste from the demolition of St. Christopher House, London is being put; and what percentage of the total waste is being used in each way.

Tony McNulty: The Highways Agency left St. Christopher House in September 2002 and the lease expired shortly after. The MOD remained for a few months longer, as their lease had not expired. The building was never a Crown building and it is being demolished by the private landlord. The Highways Agency now has nothing to do with the building.

Thelwall Viaduct

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to monitor traffic congestion in North Warrington with particular reference to the Winwick area, while repairs to the Thelwall viaduct are being carried out;
	(2)  when he expects the repair work being carried out on the Thelwall viaduct to be completed.

Tony McNulty: I have asked the acting Chief Executive of the Highways Agency, to write to my hon. Friend on these matters.
	Letter from Keith Miller to Helen Jones dated 20 October 2003
	Tony McNulty has asked Stephen Hickey, Acting Chief Executive of the Highways Agency to reply to your two recent Parliamentary Questions about traffic congestion in North Warrington, arising from ongoing works to the M6 Motorway Thelwall Viaduct, and the expected timescale for completion of those works. Stephen is currently away on official business and I am writing on his behalf.
	The Highways Agency is responsible for the operation, management, maintenance, and improvement, of the trunk road and motorway network in England, including the M6 Thelwall Viaduct. As you may be aware, the Agency's ongoing works are to replace 140 support bearings, following the discovery, during a routine inspection in July 2002, of a single failed support bearing on the viaduct carrying northbound traffic. All but one lane of that particular viaduct was then closed, and traffic is now carried on this single lane allowing access to Warrington at Junction 21, and on six reduced-width lanes on the viaduct carrying southbound traffic (three lanes in each direction) in contraflow, with a 40mph speed limit. Detailed investigations were urgently carried out and these revealed other failures in the bridge support bearings.
	The Agency is conscious that traffic is diverting onto the local road network, including the Winwick area, as a result of the ongoing works and is working closely with Warrington Borough Council on this issue. Data is being collected by both the Council and the Agency to assess the impact of the traffic diversions.
	Our aim is to re-open the northbound viaduct as soon as is practicable, and expect to complete the repair works by Spring 2005. However, we are in discussions with the Contractor to identify whether an earlier completion date for the works is possible.
	I hope this is helpful. If you would like any further information on this matter, please contact the Agency's Project Manager for the viaduct repairs, David Brindle, Room 803, Sunley Tower, Piccadilly Plaza, Manchester M1 4BE telephone 0161 930 5653.

US Ships (Dismantling)

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport for what reason he has not responded to the letter from the hon. Member for Lewes, dated 11 September, on the proposal to allow the dismantling of ships from the US reserve fleet on Teesside; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: Staff from my Department have contacted the hon. Member's office on a number of occasions asking for a copy of the letter but we have yet to receive it. When we do I shall reply to the hon. Member.

US Ships (Dismantling)

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he undertook of the availability of facilities in the US to dismantle the ships from the US Reserve Fleet intended for dismantling in the United Kingdom before permission was given for that dismantling.

Tony McNulty: Such availability is a matter for the US authorities which tendered the recycling contract. We understand that AbleUK won the particular contract for 13 ships in competition with US and foreign bidders and that other contracts have been won by US firms. Trade in waste for recovery or recycling is legal among OECD countries and the EU has its own needs for efficient and properly regulated ship recycling facilities as a contribution to sustainable development.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Pipeline

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make it his policy to ask the directors of the (a) European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and (b) International Finance Corporation to vote against providing support for the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) of the World Bank Group are currently completing their normal thorough screening and safeguards procedures on the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline project. DFID will make its decision on how to vote on the project on the basis of formal project proposals brought to the Executive Boards of these institutions. As is standard procedure, the decision will be based on an assessment of the projects compliance with the Banks' mandates, policies and procedures.

Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Pipeline

Rudi Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will ask the directors of the (a) European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and (b) International Finance Corporation to vote against providing support for the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline.

Hilary Benn: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) of the World Bank Group are currently completing their normal thorough screening and safeguards procedures on the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline project. DFID will make its decision on how to vote on the project on the basis of formal project proposals brought to the Executive Boards of these institutions. As is standard procedure, the decision will be based on an assessment of the projects compliance with the Banks' mandates, policies and procedures.

Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Pipeline

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will ask the Director of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to withhold support from the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline.

Hilary Benn: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) of the World Bank Group are currently completing their normal thorough screening and safeguards procedures on the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline project. DFID will make its decision on how to vote on the project on the basis of formal project proposals brought to the Executive Boards of these institutions. As is standard procedure, the decision will be based on an assessment of the projects compliance with the Banks' mandates, policies and procedures.

Call Centres

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether his Department plans to outsource call centre work to premises outside the United Kingdom.

Hilary Benn: DFID do not have responsibility for any call centres in the UK.

Developing Countries

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of WTO procedures to meet the need for special and differential treatment for developing countries.

Hilary Benn: World Trade Organisation (WTO) agreements include a large number of special and differential treatment provisions (some 155 in all). However, there is dissatisfaction with the existing system of differential treatment by both developed and developing countries alike. A total of 88 proposals have been submitted to amend and modify the existing provisions and to provide for new concessions. The UK has worked hard with the European Commission, and others to assess and meet the concerns of developing countries. Accordingly the WTO membership has now agreed to 25 of these agreement-specific proposals. However, central to the issue concerning special and differential treatment is how to take account of country differences (e.g. Singapore to Ghana) within WTO agreements. Developing countries are reluctant to address the issue of country classification now and only within the wider context of future negotiations. DFID is working with others on possible options to provide an effective delivery mechanism for special and differential treatment.

Ethiopia

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State, Department for International Development if he will make a statement on the drought situation in Ethiopia.

Hilary Benn: The indications are that in most parts of Ethiopia rainfall has been better this year in terms of both quantity and distribution than it was in 2002. Assessments are under way, but at present it looks likely that food production will be better this year. This will have implications for the likely size and scope of humanitarian interventions; in particular food aid interventions may be less extensive.
	Risks to health remain a serious concern. At present there is a malaria epidemic in many parts of Ethiopia. We are planning to respond urgently.
	We are continuing to closely monitor the situation in Ethiopia, and as always we remain committed to playing our part in the international response. Since the beginning of 2002 we have provided £49.1 million of food and non-food humanitarian assistance to Ethiopia.

Fossil Fuel Projects

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his policy is on the provision of (a) loans and (b) loan guarantees by multilateral development banks to fossil fuel projects overseas; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: The UK is a shareholder in a number of multilateral development banks which provide loans and loan guarantees for fossil fuel projects. The Government's policy is to ensure that these institutions comply with their own policies and procedures in all projects for which they provide finance. In considering whether to provide loans or loan guarantees this should include an assessment of the possible social and environmental impacts. In addition, our policy is to fully understand the developmental implications of fossil fuel projects. We are particularly concerned that the management of revenues from such projects occurs transparently and with a positive developmental impact. We hope that initiatives such as the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative will help to achieve this.

Fossil Fuel Projects

Rudi Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his policy is towards the provision of (a) loans and (b) loan guarantees by multilateral development banks to fossil fuel projects overseas; and what amendments he has made to it because of concerns about climate change.

Hilary Benn: The UK is a shareholder in a number of multilateral development banks which provide loans and loan guarantees for fossil fuel projects. The Government's policy is to ensure that these institutions comply with their own policies and procedures in all projects for which they provide finance. In considering whether to provide loans or loan guarantees this should include an assessment of the possible social and environmental impacts such as climate change. In addition, our policy is to fully understand the developmental implications of fossil fuel projects. We are particularly concerned that the management of revenues from such projects occurs transparently and with a positive developmental impact. We hope that initiatives such as the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative will help to achieve this.

Fossil Fuel Projects

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether his Department has carried out an analysis of the extent to which his Department's support for fossil fuel investment is consistent with (a) the United Kingdom's obligations under the Kyoto Protocol and (b) the Government's environmental aims.

Hilary Benn: The UK government are committed to taking a lead in meeting obligations under the Kyoto Protocol, including reductions of carbon dioxide emissions. At the same time, we recognise the rights of other sovereign states to fulfil their own legitimate development needs. In considering support for fossil fuel based investments, it is standard procedure for DFID to liaise with other relevant Government Departments to ensure balance and consistency between these objectives. In addition, our policy is to ensure that lending institutions take account of possible social and environmental impacts such as climate change as part of their policies and procedures in assessing fossil fuel projects, before providing loans or loan guarantees.

Fossil Fuel Projects

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what is the total value is of support given by his Department to overseas projects for (a) the extraction of fossil fuels and (b) the development of renewable energy in each of the last three years.

Hilary Benn: DFID has not been involved in the direct funding of fossil fuel extraction projects over the past three years, although we are occasionally asked to comment on the proposals of lending institutions. While recognising that countries are entitled to exploit their own natural resources, either for export purposes or to meet domestic energy requirements, full account should be taken of possible social and environmental impacts, including climate change. Our policy is to ensure that institutions providing loans or guarantees take such factors fully into account.
	On the renewable energy issue, DFID has funded about £3.6 million of research projects over the past 10 years, about half of this over the past three years. We have about £500,000 of project work still in progress.

Fossil Fuel Projects

Rudi Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the total value of support is from his Department to overseas projects for (a) the extraction and transport of fossil fuels and (b) the development of renewable energy in 2003–04.

Hilary Benn: DFID has not been involved in the direct funding of fossil fuel extraction projects over the past three years, although we are occasionally asked to comment on the proposals of lending institutions. While recognising that countries are entitled to exploit their own natural resources, either for export purposes or to meet domestic energy requirements, full account should be taken of possible social and environmental impacts, including climate change. Our policy is to ensure that institutions providing loans or guarantees take such factors fully into account.
	On the renewable energy issue, we have about £500,000 of research project work currently in progress, having funded about £3.6 million of such projects over the past 10 years.

Fossil Fuel Projects

Rudi Vis: To ask the Secretary of State, Department for International Development what assessment he has made of the extent to which his Department's support for fossil fuel investment is consistent with (a) the obligations under the Kyoto Protocol and (b) the goal of reducing UK carbon dioxide emissions by 2050.

Hilary Benn: The UK Government are committed to taking a lead in meeting obligations under the Kyoto Protocol, including reductions of carbon dioxide emissions. At the same time, we recognise the rights of other sovereign states to fulfil their own legitimate development needs. In considering support for fossil fuel based investments, it is standard procedure for DFID to liase with other relevant Government Departments to ensure balance and consistency between these objectives. In addition, our policy is to ensure that lending institutions take account of possible social and environmental impacts such as climate change as part of their policies and procedures in assessing fossil fuel projects, before providing loans or loan guarantees. I refer the hon. Member for Finchley and Golders Green to the reply to his question Hansard ref 132501 on this matter, at column 359W.
	The UK Energy White Paper sets out four core objectives of UK Energy Policy: Tackling Climate Change, Energy Security, Cutting Fuel Poverty and Competitiveness. DFID is working closely with other Government Departments, notably FCO, DTI and DEFRA, to ensure a co-ordinated Whitehall approach to international energy issues.

General Agreement on Trade in Services

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether his Department has conducted an assessment of the development impact of the General Agreement on Trade in Services.

Hilary Benn: The ability to assess the domestic economic and social impact of commitments taken under the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) is of vital importance to developing countries. Meaningful assessments will help ensure that the commitments they take on are in line with, and contribute to, wider economic growth and poverty reduction policies.
	It is important that such assessments are conducted by developing countries themselves in the process on making their own decisions during the GATS negotiations. We do however recognise the serious capacity constraints faced by many developing countries. We are therefore working closely with the World bank and UNCTAD to build a framework for supporting developing country efforts to carry out their own impact assessment work.

Iraq

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps are being taken to reduce delays of convoys into Iraq at the Kuwait/Iraq border.

Bill Rammell: I have been asked to reply.
	There are two military and one civilian crossing points between Kuwait and Iraq. The former are managed by the Coalition in close co-ordination with the Kuwaiti authorities. The civilian crossing point is under Kuwaiti control.
	The flow of traffic at the military crossing points is not currently subject to unacceptable delays. Nevertheless the US, in consultation with UK forces, is working with the Kuwaiti authorities on further expediting the flow of traffic across the border without compromising security.
	There are longer delays at the civilian crossing point. Because of well-founded concerns over security and smuggling, the Kuwaiti authorities check carefully both people and goods crossing the border. The Coalition and the Kuwaitis are working on ways to reduce the resulting delays while maintaining security.

Iraq

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will support the opening of a women's resources centre in Basra.

Hilary Benn: Opportunities for providing support on women's issues in Basra will be identified once the member of staff responsible for gender issues is in place. Initiatives such as a women's centre will be considered alongside other priorities.

Iraq

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what plans he has to deploy gender specialists to Iraq.

Hilary Benn: A member of staff responsible for gender issues is currently on a three-month deployment in Baghdad and a second specialist will shortly begin a six-month deployment in Basra.

Kyoto Protocol

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what research his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the extent to which his Department's support for fossil fuel investment is consistent with (i) the UK's obligations under the Kyoto Protocol and (ii) the Government's target to reduce the UK's carbon dioxide emissions by 60 per cent. from 1990 levels by 2050; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: The UK government are committed to taking a lead in meeting obligations under the Kyoto Protocol, including reductions of carbon dioxide emissions. At the same time, we recognise the rights of other sovereign states to fulfil their own legitimate development needs. In considering support for fossil fuel based investments, it is standard procedure for DFID to liaise with other relevant Government Departments to ensure balance and consistency between these objectives. In addition, our policy is to ensure that lending institutions take account of possible social and environmental impacts such as climate change as part of their policies and procedures in assessing fossil fuel projects, before providing loans or loan guarantees.
	The UK Energy White Paper sets out four core objectives of UK Energy Policy: Tackling Climate Change, Energy Security, Cutting Fuel Poverty and Competitiveness. DFID is working closely with other Government Departments, notably FCO, DTI and DEFRA, to ensure a co-ordinated Whitehall approach to international energy issues.

Malawi

Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what financial assistance has been given to Malawi in the last six months.

Hilary Benn: In the first six months of this financial year, DFID spent a total of £14.2 million on development assistance to Malawi. Of this, £5.3 million was financial aid, which was administered directly by the Government of Malawi. Financial aid was disbursed in a number of key areas, notably on the Malawi Safety, Security and Access to Justice programme and the education and health sectors, where funds were used to build education and medical facilities as well as supplying drugs.

Multinational Enterprises

Rudi Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his policy is on instructing the UK directors of the (a) European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and (b) International Finance Corporation to grant support for projects that have been the subject of an on-going complaint for breach of OECD guidelines on multinational enterprises.

Hilary Benn: UK policy is to assess proposed EBRD and IFC projects against the mandates, policies and procedures of those institutions. The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises ("the Guidelines") are recommendations addressed by adhering countries to multi-national enterprises ("MNE's"). They represent a framework of principles of good conduct for multi-national companies in their business activities, designed to help ensure that they act in harmony with the policies of the countries in which they operate and that they consider the views of other stakeholders. The Guidelines aim to promote and develop a sustainable approach to business conduct and to build an atmosphere of confidence and predictability between business, labour, governments and society as a whole. It is intended that companies use the Guidelines as a benchmark when developing their own codes of conduct. The Government take complaints under the guidelines very seriously and have an established mechanism for dealing with complaints through the National Contact Point in DTI. This mechanism applies equally to projects for which financing by a multilateral financial institution is being considered.

Multinational Enterprises

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what guidance his Department has given to UK directors of the (a) European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and (b) International Finance Corporation in relation to projects that are the subject of a complaint for a breach of OECD guidelines on multi-national enterprises; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: UK policy is to assess proposed EBRD and IFC projects against the mandates, policies and procedures of those institutions. The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises ("the Guidelines") are recommendations addressed by adhering countries to multi-national enterprises ("MNE's"). They represent a framework of principles of good conduct for multi-national companies in their business activities, designed to help ensure that they act in harmony with the policies of the countries in which they operate and that they consider the views of other stakeholders. The Guidelines aim to promote and develop a sustainable approach to business conduct and to build an atmosphere of confidence and predictability between business, labour, governments and society as a whole. It is intended that companies use the Guidelines as a benchmark when developing their own codes of conduct. The Government takes complaints under the guidelines very seriously and has an established mechanism for dealing with complaints through the National Contact Point in DTI. This mechanism applies equally to projects for which financing by a multilateral financial institution is being considered.

Multinational Enterprises

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his policy is on the role of the (a) European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and (b) International Finance Corporation of the World Bank in granting support to projects that are subject to an outstanding complaint for a breach of OECD guidelines on multi-national enterprises.

Hilary Benn: UK policy is to assess proposed EBRD and IFC projects against the mandates, policies and procedures of those institutions. The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises ("the Guidelines") are recommendations addressed by adhering countries to multi-national enterprises ("MNE's"). They represent a framework of principles of good conduct for multi-national companies in their business activities, designed to help ensure that they act in harmony with the policies of the countries in which they operate and that they consider the views of other stakeholders (for example in respect of social and environmental issues). The Guidelines aim to promote and develop a sustainable approach to business conduct and to build an atmosphere of confidence and predictability between business, labour, governments and society as a whole. It is intended that companies use the Guidelines as a benchmark when developing their own codes of conduct. The Government takes complaints under the guidelines very seriously and has an established mechanism for dealing with complaints through the National Contact Point in DTI. This mechanism applies equally to projects for which financing by a multilateral financial institution is being considered.

Renewable Energy

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make a statement on the value of support from his Department to projects overseas for (a) the extraction and transportation of fossil fuels and (b) the development of renewable energy.

Hilary Benn: DFID has not been involved in the direct funding of fossil fuel extraction and transportation (pipeline) projects over the past three years, although we are occasionally asked to comment on the proposals of lending institutions. While recognising that countries are entitled to exploit their own natural resources, either for export purposes or to meet domestic energy requirements, full account should be taken of possible social and environmental impacts, including climate change. Our policy is to ensure that institutions providing loans or guarantees take such factors fully into account.
	On the renewable energy issue, DFID has funded about £3.6 million of research projects over the past 10 years, about half of this over the past three years. We have about £500,000 of project work still in progress.

Renewable Energy

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for International Department for International Development what the total value of support from his Department to overseas projects is for (a) the extraction and transport of fossil fuels and (b) the development of renewable energy.

Hilary Benn: DFID has not been involved in the direct funding of fossil fuel extraction and transportation (pipeline) projects over the past three years, although we are occasionally asked to comment on the proposals of lending institutions. While recognising that countries are entitled to exploit their own natural resources, either for export purposes or to meet domestic energy requirements, full account should be taken of possible social and environmental impacts, including climate change. Our policy is to ensure that institutions providing loans or guarantees take such factors fully into account.
	On the renewable energy issue, DFID has funded about £3.6 million of research projects over the past 10 years, about half of this over the past three years. We have about £500,000 of project work still in progress.

Reproductive Health

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to his answer of 14 October 2003, reference 131645 if he will list the (a) reproductive health and (b) family planning projects (i) run directly and (ii) supported financially by his Department in each Central American country, including an outline of each programme's aims and methods; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: DFID is supporting two key programmes that involve work on reproductive health and family planning across all of Central America including Nicaragua, Honduras, Ecuador, Guatemala and El Salvador:
	Direct support on a £1.5 million project to reduce the impact of HIV/AIDS through strengthening national and regional capacity in HIV/AIDS prevention, control and care, focusing on Nicaragua and Honduras.
	A £2.0 million cross-regional project on improving sexual health and reproductive health with the United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA) to reduce morbidity, mortality and the social problems associated with sexual and reproductive health in Central America. A component of this project involves funding for Marie Stopes International who are helping to provide access for adolescents to Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) services in Managua, Nicaragua.

Sugar Regime

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to his answer of 15 September 2003, Official Report, column 550W, on agricultural produce (EU reforms), if he will make a statement on the research undertaken by his Department on the impact on developing countries of the Four Families of Sugar regime reform options put forward by the European Commission earlier this year.

Hilary Benn: The discussions regarding reform to the EU sugar regime are still in a relatively early stage. On 23 September 2003, the European Commission published an Extended Impact Assessment and posed three possible reform options for the future of EU sugar policy. These options will now be debated by EU member states, which must agree to any major policy changes in the sector.
	With specific reference to the research undertaken by DFID, we have completed our own analysis on the reform options and commissioned a study, which is still in its drafting stage, to explore the potential need for adjustment assistance for ACP countries with preferential access to the EU sugar market that may lose out from the regime.

Unused Medicines

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State, Department for International Development what schemes exist for sending unused medicines from the United Kingdom to Third World countries; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: The UK Government are committed to increasing access to medicines in the developing world. The factors recognised by the World Health Organisation (WHO) that can improve poor people's access are; affordable pricing, sustainable financing, reliable health and supply systems and the rational selection and use of existing drugs. Appropriate donations of medicines can play a useful role, including through the use of UK's tax relief on drug donations, although country-level procurement of affordable medicines is likely to be more sustainable in the long term.
	The Department of Health is aware of a recent proposal from a medical aid charity who supply medicines to Africa and is exploring a number of related issues connected to the scheme.
	The proposed scheme does not comply with the quality recommendations in the Guidelines for Drug Donations issued by the WHO and the Department of Health is seeking further advice from WHO on this aspect.
	There are also legal and ethical issues in which the Department of Health will be seeking the advice of the WHO where necessary.

Zimbabwe

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment he has made of food shortages in Zimbabwe.

Hilary Benn: The Zimbabwe Emergency Food Security and Vulnerability Assessment released in April made a provisional estimate of 5.5 million people needing food aid by the first quarter of 2004. This figure might rise, since, with inflation now almost 500 per cent., many more people, particularly in cities and towns, cannot afford food even where it is available. The Government of Zimbabwe lacks the foreign exchange to import grains and continues to restrict the role of the private sector in importing and distributing food. The number of people needing feeding in urban areas is being assessed this month.
	To date, less than 40 per cent. of the funding required for the current World Food Programme's Emergency Operation has been pledged by donors. Food aid supplies are therefore secure only through December. An interruption in food supplies, combined with the high level of HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe, would obviously risk a significant increase in mortality rates. We are working closely with other members of the international community to update the overall estimates of humanitarian need. We will continue to monitor the position closely and encourage further contributions as necessary. This week we announced an additional contribution of £5 million to the WFP Emergency Operation. This is in addition to some £11 million of new commitments we have already made this year through NGO partners for food aid and agricultural recovery, and some £2 million granted to UNICEF for vaccines to immunise against childhood diseases.

PRIME MINISTER

Cabinet Committee on Biotechnology

Norman Baker: To ask the Prime Minister what criteria govern decisions by Lord Sainsbury to withdraw from discussions at the Cabinet Committee on Biotechnology.

Tony Blair: All Ministers are required to conduct themselves in accordance with the requirements set out in the Ministerial Code. As has already been made clear, Lord Sainsbury does not take part in any Government decisions or discussions relating to GM food including those at the Sci-Bio Committee.

Departmental Staff

Michael Meacher: To ask the Prime Minister if he will list the persons employed in an official capacity at No. 10 Downing street; what post each of them holds; and how much each is paid.

Tony Blair: A list of the main office holders in the Prime Minister's Office is set out in the Civil Service Year Book, which is updated annually. Copies are available in the House Libraries.
	Information about an individual's pay is not disclosed under exemption 12 of Part 2 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
	However, details of the pay of special advisers by payband are published on an annual basis. For details of the paybill for special advisers for 2002–03, I refer my right hon. Friend to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Croydon, Central (Mr. Davies) on 16 July 2003, Official Report, columns 327–30W.

International Treaties

William Cash: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to his Answer of 14 October 2003 to the honourable Member for Aldridge-Brownhills (Mr. Shepherd), Official Report, column 60W, on international treaties, on what evidential basis he relied in his statement that a State may not plead its national law to escape its international law obligations, including its treaty obligations.

Tony Blair: The principle referred to in the answer of 14 October 2003, Official Report, column 60W, is well established. The Permanent Court of Arbitration, the Permanent Court of International Justice and the International Court of Justice have produced a consistent jurisprudence upholding this principle.

Iraq

Chris Smith: To ask the Prime Minister what commitments he has given to the President of the United States in relation to the UK's financial contribution to (a) the cost of the provision of troops in and (b) the reconstruction of Iraq.

Tony Blair: I have given no commitments to the President of the United States in relation to financial contributions to the provision of troops in, and the reconstruction of, Iraq. The Government are covering the costs of the deployment of British troops and providing some logistical help to Coalition partners operating under UK command in Multi-National Division South East (MND SE).
	The Government have pledged a UK financial commitment towards Iraq's reconstruction of £544 million for the three years from April 2003.

Iraq

David Winnick: To ask the Prime Minister what consultations he has had with the US President over the Iraq Governing Council opposition to Turkish troops being part of the occupying forces; and if he will make a statement.

Tony Blair: I regularly discuss the situation in Iraq with President Bush.
	The Government is grateful for Turkey's efforts to aid in the reconstruction in Iraq. We welcome the generous offer of Turkish troops and the vote in the Turkish Parliament to approve this in principle. The practicalities of the potential deployment are a matter for the Coalition Provisional Authority and the US and Turkish authorities, taking into full consideration local sensitivities, including those raised by the Iraq Governing Council.

Iraq

Llew Smith: To ask the Prime Minister when he received the letter on the nuclear weapons time-line in the Iraq Dossier, sent jointly by the hon. Members for Blaenau Gwent and for Hampstead and Highgate (Glenda Jackson) on 27August; and when he will reply.

Tony Blair: I received the letter on 28 August and replied to my hon. Friend and my hon. Friend the Member for Hampstead and Highgate (Glenda Jackson) on 6 October.

Ministerial Code

Norman Baker: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make it his policy for individuals not holding ministerial office but who carry out tasks of ministerial equivalence to be subject to the Ministerial Code of Conduct in respect of such tasks.

Tony Blair: No. The Ministerial Code applies to Ministers.

Reports (Provenance)

Frank Dobson: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to his answer of 15 October, (ref. 131973), what the provenance is of the reports referred to in his answer of 15 October.

Tony Blair: The reports to which I referred in my answer of 15 October come to the Government through a variety of channels.
	I am unable to be more specific about the precise origins of all the information upon which our concerns are based, under Exemption 1(a) of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

Security Clearance

Norman Baker: To ask the Prime Minister what level of security clearance applied to (a) the right hon. Member for Hartlepool (Mr. Mandelson) and (b) Mr. Jonathan Powell as of 1 October.

Tony Blair: The security clearance of individual Members of Parliament is not a matter for the Government.
	Jonathan Powell has the appropriate level of security clearance to do his job.

DEFENCE

Euro

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much has been spent in each year by his Department in preparing for UK entry to the euro; how much his Department plans to spend on preparations for UK entry to the euro for each year from the current financial year up to and including 2005–06; and what estimates he has made of the total costs to his Department of changeover to the European Single Currency.

Adam Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him on 14 October 2003, Official Report, column 142W, by my hon. Friend the Financial Secretary to the Treasury (Ms Kelly).

Bailed Soldiers

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his policy is on the allocation of duties to a soldier released on bail on charges of unlawful killing.

Adam Ingram: A soldier will perform normal duties providing he or she is medically fit and the range of duties is in accordance with any specific requirements of bail.

Departmental Travel

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department spent on foreign travel on official business in each year since 1999.

Ivor Caplin: This information is not held centrally in the form requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Young Service Personnel (Welfare)

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what measures he has taken to involve the families of young service personnel in safeguarding their welfare.

Adam Ingram: The armed forces have a long standing tradition of including the families of all personnel in the overall welfare process which is an essential component in the maintenance of morale and operational effectiveness. A comprehensive audit of procedures within initial training establishments undertaken during 2002 nevertheless confirmed the need for units to sustain links with parents and for individuals to have regular access to external communications which is seen as significant in maintaining morale. Personnel staffs in each of the Services have identified best practices to be adopted. These include better access to mobile phones, the provision of internet cafes and plans to hard-wire internet infrastructure into barrack blocks, all with the aim of improving the ability of personnel of all ages to maintain contact with their families. The parents of personnel under the age of 18 are written to, with background details of the training unit and the regime involved. In addition, some units are encouraging 'parent days' at which parents and families are able to visit their sons and daughters and discuss issues with appropriate staffs and unit personnel.

Iraq

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many individuals in each of HM armed services were (a) charged and (b) disciplined for failing to answer call-up for the conflict in Iraq.

Ivor Caplin: Only the Reserve Forces are subject to call-out. To date no members of the Reserve Forces have been charged for failing to report for mobilisation after being served with a call-out notice. However, a small number of cases are still under investigation.

Iraq

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his answer of 17 September 2003, Official Report, column 754W, on weapons of mass destruction, whether any of the civil servants searching for weapons of mass destruction were specifically recruited for this purpose.

Adam Ingram: On 16 October there were six civil servants in Iraq working for the Iraq Survey Group who were specifically recruited to assist it in its task of searching for Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. This number will continue to change as new staff join and others complete their periods of duty.

Iraq

David Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many ex-RAF personnel subject to reserve list regulations were called up for duty during operation Telic, broken down by occupation.

Ivor Caplin: There were 165 RAF ex-regular reservists accepted into service for duty on Operation TELIC. Information on their civilian occupations is not held centrally and could be provided only at a disproportionate cost.

Iraq

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the total cost to date has been of weapons, missiles, munitions and ammunition used in (a) the conflict in Iraq and (b) security and policing since the end of the conflict.

Adam Ingram: The Ministry of Defence identifies the costs of Operations in terms of the net additional costs it has incurred. The costs which the Department would have incurred had the operation not been undertaken—expenditure on wages and salaries or on conducting training exercises, for example—are deducted from the total costs of the operation.
	Calculating all the costs of military action will take some time since they will include the cost of ammunition, bombs and guided weapons consumed in excess of peacetime levels and the cost of repairing and replacing equipment destroyed and damaged. I am afraid, therefore, that I cannot yet provide cost information in the detail my hon. Friend requires.

Private Tesoni Vakacakaudrove

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what arrangements were made for the inquest into the death of Private Tesoni Vakacakaudrove at the Defence School of Transport, Leconfield, on 6 October 2002.

Adam Ingram: These arrangements are a matter for HM Coroner in line with the Coroners' system in England and Wales.

Sergeant Roger Timothy Paul Clements-Hunt

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many vehicles and of what description were involved in the motor accident resulting in the death of Sergeant Roger Timothy Paul Clements-Hunt on 8 March 2001 on army exercise in Germany; and what the findings of the health and safety investigation were.

Adam Ingram: The two vehicles involved in this incident were a Danish registered Heavy Goods Vehicle and a Ministry of Defence (Army) Leyland DAF 4 ton GS truck. The incident was the subject of an investigation by the German Civil Authorities. I am not aware of any separate health and safety investigation.

Corporal Thomas Rees

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the result was of the accident inquiry following the death of Corporal Thomas Rees on 23 May; and what the principal recommendations of the inquiry were.

Adam Ingram: This incident has been investigated by the appropriate Civil Police authority, the Land Accident Investigation Team, and the Health and Safety Executive. The Health and Safety Executive has yet to report its findings. An Army Board of Inquiry will be convened in due course. It would be inappropriate for me to comment until all this work has concluded.

Defence Export Services Organisation

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what procedures the Defence Export Services Organisation undertakes to ensure that special commissions for which it grants permission represent legitimate fees for services rendered.

Adam Ingram: The Defence Export Services Organisation does not authorise the payment of commissions.

Defence Export Services Organisation

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  whether BAE Systems sought or obtained clearance from his Department or from the Defence Export Services Organisation for payment of agency commission in connection with the sale of defence equipment to South Africa;
	(2)  whether British Aerospace (a) sought and (b) obtained clearance from (i) his Department and (ii) the Defence Export Services Organisation for the payment of agency commission in connection with the sale of defence equipment to Qatar.

Adam Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to the answer which my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence gave on 1 September 2003, Official Report, column 899W, to the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable).

Defence Export Services Organisation

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many requests for special commissions have been referred to the Defence Export Services Organisation since 1995; and how many such requests DESO have granted, in which countries and on what dates.

Adam Ingram: None.

Aldermaston

David Rendel: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many over-flights in the controlled airspace of Aldermaston have been recorded for each year since 2001 for which figures are available; and how many prosecutions have followed.

Ivor Caplin: Since 2001 there have been three alleged incursions by military aircraft into the restricted airspace around AWE Aldermaston. The RAF Police Defence Flying Complaints Investigation Team investigated all these incidents and in each case it was found that no breach of the restriction had occurred. Alleged incursions of the restricted airspace by civilian aircraft would be the responsibility of my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Transport.

Colchester Garrison

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  whether the Ministry of Defence Police have jurisdiction over former Ministry of Defence dwellings and areas of the Colchester Garrison which have been sold by Annington Homes to private owners;
	(2)  whether the security of military personnel and dependants living in Ministry of Defence housing at the Colchester Garrison has been reviewed following the disposal of dwellings by Annington Homes; and if he will make a statement.

Ivor Caplin: The security situation in the Colchester estates that are now occupied by Service families housed by the Defence Housing Executive (DHE), owner-occupiers and civilian housing association tenants, is unchanged since I replied to the hon. Member's question on this matter on 18 June 2003, Official Report, column 246. The regular routine patrols continue and there has been no increase in crime since DHE's releases of surplus property and the lease of properties by AHL to Colne Housing Association.
	Any incidents arising in the DHE patch are the responsibility of Ministry of Defence Police (MDP); the Essex police cover the non-DHE areas, and the two police forces assist each other when required. The Royal Military Police also patrol the estate. Overall these arrangements imply a greater police presence and better response times than anywhere else in Colchester.
	75 per cent. of the DHE properties have the recommended level of door furniture security; the remainder have chains and spy holes but, in some cases, only 3-lever locks. These will be replaced with 5-lever locks in this financial year.

Colchester Garrison

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  whether he has been consulted by Annington Homes over (a) the disposal of former Ministry of Defence dwellings at the Colchester Garrison and (b) proposals by Annington Homes for the development of private housing on the site;
	(2)  what discussions he has had with Annington Homes on proposals to demolish former Ministry of Defence housing at the Colchester Garrison and build private housing.

Ivor Caplin: Annington Homes Ltd (AHL) have not consulted the Ministry of Defence over the disposal of former MOD dwellings at Colchester Garrison or their proposals for the development of private housing on the site. Under the terms of the 1996 Sale Agreement it is entirely a matter for AHL how they dispose of the houses for which MOD has no future requirement and has handed back, or how they choose to redevelop a surplus site.

Departmental Staff (Scotland)

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the manning changes in Ministry of Defence staff in Scotland for each quarter since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Ivor Caplin: The number of civilian personnel located in Scotland in each quarter since January 1997 to October 2003 is set out in the table.
	
		
			 Date Full-time equivalents(1) 
		
		
			 1997  
			 January 9,476.4 
			 April 9,624.4 
			 July 9,783.5 
			 October 9,882.2 
			 1998  
			 January 9,865.3 
			 April 9,614.1 
			 July 9,193.6 
			 October 9,444.7 
			 1999  
			 January 9,069.5 
			 April 9,292.1 
			 July 9,273.8 
			 October 9,097.8 
			 2000  
			 January 9,065.2 
			 April 9,394.2 
			 July 9,329.4 
			 October 9,476.5 
			 2001  
			 January 9,446.6 
			 April 9,421.3 
			 July 9,140.3 
			 October 9,111.0 
			 2002  
			 January 9,055.8 
			 April (2)8,597.2 
			 July 8,595.0 
			 October 8,443.6 
			 2003  
			 January (3)7,081.1 
			 April 7,115.2 
			 July 7,046.9 
			 October 7,047.2 
		
	
	(1) Results shown are for all permanent staff including Trading Funds.
	(2) A function previously performed in the Deputy Chief Defence Staff Commitments DCDS (P&P) area was transferred to the private sector.
	(3) Management of Clyde dockyards moved to private sector.

Detached Duties

David Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to discuss with the Chancellor of the Exchequer the taxation of armed forces pay during detached duties.

Ivor Caplin: I have no plans for such discussions.

National Army Museum (North)

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions his Department has held with the Treasury on the granting of permission for the construction of the National Army Museum (North).

Ivor Caplin: The Ministry of Defence has had discussions with the Treasury on the National Army Museum (North) project and officials from both Departments last met, together with NAM staff, on 4 September 2003.

National Army Museum (North)

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what obstacles remain to the commencement of works at the National Army Museum (North); and when he envisages such work will begin.

Ivor Caplin: Work continues to resolve a range of outstanding issues on this project, though none is currently thought to be insurmountable.

Northern Ireland

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his estimate is of the number of Her Majesty's armed services personnel that have served in Northern Ireland since August 1969.

Adam Ingram: Since August 1969, the total number of soldiers who have served at least one day in Northern Ireland is 322,120 while the number of officers who have served at least one day in Northern Ireland is 24,120. The figure for Officers is lower than that given in the answer to my hon. Friend on 5 March 2001, Official Report, columns 17–18. The inaccuracy has only come to light when we sought an update of those figures to answer this question. (These figures include regular soldiers, full and part-time members of the Ulster Defence Regiment and the Royal Irish Regiment. It also includes members of the TA who do not play any part in security operations in Northern Ireland, but it is not possible to extract these figures from the overall totals.)
	In the case of the Royal Air Force 2,380 Officers and 26,010 Airmen/Airwomen are recorded as having received pay while serving in Northern Ireland and will, therefore, have served at least one month in Province. Comparable information for the Royal Navy and Royal Marines is not available.

Organophosphates

Paul Tyler: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if adequate protective equipment is available to British military units using organophosphate pesticides; and if he will make a statement.

Ivor Caplin: holding answer 3 February 2003
	Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for use by United Kingdom armed forces is available through the normal supply chain. The Ministry of Defence has procedures in place to enable requirements for PPE to be met within the specified timescales.

Parliamentary Questions

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the average time taken to answer written parliamentary questions has been in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Ivor Caplin: Defence Ministers aim to answer Named Day written questions on the day specified and Ordinary written questions within five working days. The average time taken to answer written parliamentary questions could be calculated only at disproportionate cost.

Parliamentary Questions

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many questions directed to him remain unanswered.

Ivor Caplin: In the current session, up to and including 15 September, some 4,575 parliamentary questions were tabled to the Secretary of State for Defence. As of 14 October, 88 (1.9 per cent.) of these questions remained unanswered.

Private Peter Watson

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what duties have been allocated to Private Peter Watson while on bail at Palace Barracks Holywood; what assurances were given to enable his release from custody; and what rank of officer made representations.

Adam Ingram: In accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998,1 am unable to make public any personal data relating to Private Watson unless the relevant conditions are met.
	Bail conditions are a matter for the civil courts. No assurances were sought from, or given by, the Ministry of Defence in connection with Private Watson's release from custody.

Recruitment

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people from Fiji have been recruited into Her Majesty's armed forces in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Ivor Caplin: The number of Fijian recruits to the Army for the last five years is shown in the table.
	
		
			 Financial Year Number 
		
		
			 1998–99 20 
			 1999–2000 315 
			 2000–01 265 
			 2001–02 490 
			 2002–03 470 
		
	
	Figures for the Naval Service and Royal Air Force are not available, as this information is not held centrally.

Reserve Forces

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the outcome was of his review of reservists' pay on mobilisation.

Ivor Caplin: There has been no review of mobilised reservists' pay. When called out for mobilised service, reservists receive the same rates of pay and are generally entitled to the same allowances as their regular counter-parts. In addition to receiving their military salary; reservists may claim financial assistance if their civilian earnings are greater than their military pay. The regulations governing the latter are currently under review.

Service Accommodation

David Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of housing accommodation on RAF operational UK bases has been identified as below tolerable standards.

Ivor Caplin: The Defence Housing Executive (DHE) manages and maintains Service family housing in Great Britain. As these properties are managed on a tri-Service basis, statistical information on the individual Services is not available.
	DHE is working towards upgrading its entire core housing stock (around 41,000 properties) to Standard 1 for condition, the best standard of Service housing. Currently some 90 per cent. of Service families are in houses at either Standard 1 or Standard 2 for condition and only 63 core properties are still at Standard 4 for Condition, the lowest standard of Service housing.
	In the last financial year DHE exceeded its Key Target of 1,200 upgrades, bringing 1,440 properties up to Standard 1. Partial upgrades are also undertaken, with plans for improvements to over 4,600 homes this financial year.
	All properties are inspected before families move in to ensure that they are fit for occupation, and DHE has teams of technically qualified staff at regional and local level to deal with problems that occur during occupation.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Afghanistan

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the cross-departmental drug strategy to help Afghanistan achieve the target of eliminating poppy production within the next 10 years; and what plans he has to fulfil the role of international lead on counter-narcotics co-ordination in Afghanistan.

Bill Rammell: The UK is the lead nation on Counter Narcotics (CN) in Afghanistan and has a Public Service Agreement (PSA) target to contribute to a reduction in poppy cultivation in Afghanistan by 70 per cent. in five years and by 100 per cent. in 10 years. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the UK have worked with the Afghan Transitional Administration to help them produce their National Drug Control Strategy.
	The UK has developed a plan of activities to support the Afghan authorities in implementing their Strategy, including law enforcement, institution building, drugs demand reduction and alternative livelihoods for poppy farmers. Progress is monitored by stakeholders across Government.
	As the lead nation, the UK is contributing £70 million over three years and posting additional personnel to Afghanistan to lead this work. It is also planned to hold a counter-narcotics conference in January 2004 in Kabul, involving Afghan and international representation, to encourage further support for the delivery of this project.

Afghanistan

Martin Caton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the timetable is for elections in Afghanistan.

Mike O'Brien: Under the Bonn Agreement, national elections are due to be held by June 2004. On 24 September in New York, President Karzai announced that the presidential elections will be held in June, in keeping with the Bonn Agreement, but that the parliamentary election will have to come later. However a firm timetable has yet to be agreed.
	Voter registration has already started under the auspices of the United Nations, with priority being given to remote areas that will be inaccessible during winter months. Registration is scheduled to conclude in May 2004. An Interim Electoral Commission and a Joint Electoral Management Body were appointed on 26 July to begin preparations for the 2004 ballot. The Interim Electoral Commission will hand over to an independent Electoral Commission before the ballot next year.

Embassy Staff

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to his answer of 17 September, 2003 ref.130397, on security clearance levels, for what reason locally-engaged personal assistants recruited by British embassies are subject to a lower vetting classification than the developed vetting required for UK-based personal assistants recruited for the same posts.

Mike O'Brien: The appropriate level of security clearance for locally engaged personal assistants is determined, in accordance with HM Government's statement of vetting policy, as announced to the House on 15 December 1994 (Official Report, columns 764–66). The levels required for staff both locally engaged and UK based, are based on the need for them to have access to classified material. The requirement for such access for locally engaged personal assistants is usually different than for UK based personnel. In most cases locally recruited staff will not normally have access to classified material.

Slovakia

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the Government's policy on visas for Slovakian citizens before their accession to the EU.

Chris Mullin: All visa regimes, including that in respect of Slovak nationals, are kept under review and are lifted when it is judged that the circumstances which gave rise to the imposition of the requirement have been addressed. The visa regime on Slovak nationals will be lifted as soon as possible and at the latest by May 2004, when the Slovak Republic becomes a full member state of the European Union.

Intergovernmental Conference

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether, at the forthcoming Intergovernmental Conference, the Government will seek to amend Article III-206, with particular reference to the provision that states that: When the Union has defined a position on a subject which is on the United Nations Security Council agenda, those member states which sit on the Security Council shall request that the Union Minister for Foreign Affairs be asked to present the Union's position; and if he will make a statement.

Denis MacShane: The Government will not seek to change the aforementioned provision in Article III-206 at the Intergovernmental Conference. This Article allows for a continuation of the current practice, in line with the Security Council's Rules of Procedure, whereby the Presidency can speak at open meetings of the Council. Under the new Treaty, the European Foreign Minister instead of the Presidency will represent the Union where non-members of the Council are permitted to speak and when the Union has defined a common position on the subject of the meeting.
	The UK retains the right to speak in a national capacity as a permanent member of the Security Council. This is safeguarded in Art III-206.2, which states that
	"Member States which are members of the Security Council will, in the execution of their functions, defend the positions and the interests of the Union, without prejudice to their responsibilities under the provisions of the United Nations Charter".
	The Government would not accept the any proposal that meant giving up its permanent membership of the UN Security Council and the rights which go with that.

Military Nuclear Testing

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions (a) he and (b) members of his Department have had since April with representatives of (i) the US Administration, (ii) the governments of the EU member states, (iii) the governments of prospective EU candidates, (iv) the Russian Government and (v) the Government of China about military nuclear testing; and if he will make a statement.

Denis MacShane: My noble Friend, the Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean and officials spoke to representatives of governments from all the regional groupings at the Conference on the entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) in September 2003, which was attended by 102 State Parties. In her speech to the Conference, Baroness Symons reiterated the UK's continued strong support for the CTBT. The full text of the speech is available on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website: www.fco.gov.uk-speeches
	Prior to the Conference, we also participated in an extensive EU lobbying effort, including with both the United States and China, to urge their ratification of the Treaty.
	The UK has not carried out a nuclear explosion since November 1991. We signed the CTBT in 1996 and ratified it in 1998. We continue to urge all states that have not yet done so to sign and ratify the Treaty as soon as possible.

Euro

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much has been spent in each year by his Department in preparing for UK entry to the euro; how much his Department plans to spend on preparations for UK entry to the euro for each year from the current financial year up to and including 2005–06; and what estimates he has made of the total costs to his Department of changeover to the European Single Currency.

Denis MacShane: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 14 October by my hon. Friend the Financial Secretary to the Treasury.

Euro

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many speeches he has made since 1 June 2003 supporting entry into the eurozone.

Denis MacShane: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has made clear the Government's position on EMU—and indeed the EU more broadly—repeatedly over the last four months. May I draw my hon. Friend's attention in particular to the speech he gave to the Foreign Policy Centre on 27 August 2003.

Pakistan

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on relations with Pakistan.

Mike O'Brien: The UK has a close relationship with Pakistan. This relationship is strengthened by our historical links to Pakistan and by the very large number of Pakistani-origin British citizens. We have regular engagement with the Pakistani Government at all levels on a range of issues. Our relationship was further strengthened by the successful visit to the UK by President Musharraf in June 2003. The Pakistani Foreign Minister will be making an official visit to the UK as a Guest of Government in November 2003.

Pakistan

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he will meet the new Pakistani High Commissioner.

Mike O'Brien: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary briefly met the new Pakistani High Commissioner at the Labour Party Conference and I had a substantive meeting with her on 22 September 2003.

Pakistan

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to his answer of 2 July 2003, Official Report, column 311W, on Pakistan, whether consular access to Mr. Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh has been granted; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Mullin: We continue to seek consular access to Mr Sheikh. As explained to my hon. Friend on 2 July, if Mr Sheikh is a dual national, the Pakistani authorities are not obliged to give us consular access or information. We will, however, continue to press for access to ensure Mr Sheikh's welfare. The British Deputy High Commission in Karachi last wrote to the Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 30 July, reminding them of the provisions of the Vienna Convention. We have not yet received a response.
	The British Deputy High Commission also wrote to Mr Sheikh's legal representative on 1 September, asking him to deliver a letter offering consular assistance to Mr. Sheikh. Mr. Sheikh's legal representative explained that an earlier letter from the Deputy High Commission had been passed to Mr Sheikh. He therefore declined to pass this more recent letter to Mr Sheikh.

Visas

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many letters from hon. Members were received by UKvisas in August 2003.

Chris Mullin: In August 2003, UKvisas received 1,466 letters from Members of Parliament.

Visas

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he intends to fill the post of Director of Visas, India.

Chris Mullin: The post of Director of Visas in India is currently filled by Chris Dix. A decision as to who will replace him has not yet been made.

Visas

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the backlog of correspondence for UKvisas was on 1 September.

Chris Mullin: Ukvisas's computer system only enables the user to view current information and does not allow access to historical information. On 1 October the backlog of correspondence stood at 370. This refers to individual letters or e-mails that had not been answered within our deadlines (20 working days to reply to members of the public and 15 working days to reply to Members of Parliament). From January to week ending 22 August, the correspondence section received 15,892 letters, an increase of 37.5 per cent. over the same period in 2002. Ukvisas has also seen a 50 per cent. increase in the number of e-mail enquiries it is receiving (currently around 5 per cent. a month). We are constantly seeking to improve our working practices to deal with this rise in demand and are also expanding our correspondence unit.

Turkey

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Turkish Government about the future entry of Turkey into the EU; and what issues were discussed.

Denis MacShane: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs met Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul at UNGA on 25 September. He reaffirmed the UK's support for Turkey's EU candidacy and welcomed the significant progress that Turkey has made, particularly the 6th and 7th EU-related reform packages this summer. He and his Turkish colleague agreed that consistent and effective implementation of these is now crucial.

Call Centres

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether his Department plans to outsource call centre work to premises outside the United Kingdom.

Bill Rammell: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is currently managing a project to secure a private sector strategic partner to assist in the development and support of the next generation of its Firecrest IT infrastructure. The future management of the internal help desk will be part of discussions with the private sector, when this partner is appointed, probably next year. But there are no plans to place this work outside the UK.
	The FCO uses the MM call centre based in Bristol to provide travel advice. There are no plans to change this service.

Iraq

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans he has to visit Iraq to view the reconstruction programme.

Bill Rammell: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary last visited Iraq on 2 July. His travel plans, including plans to visit Iraq, are kept under review. He hopes to be able to return soon. My noble Friend, the Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean, Minister of State for the Middle East, visited Iraq between 7 and 8 October.

Iraq

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how regularly he holds discussions with the US Secretary of State on the activities of coalition forces in Iraq.

Bill Rammell: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary discusses all aspects of policy on Iraq frequently with the US Secretary of State.

Iraq

Harold Best: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what support the UK is giving to the Iraq Governing Council and cabinet.

Bill Rammell: Ministers have established a dialogue with Governing Council members and Iraqi Ministers on providing assistance. British officials in Iraq help the Council and Ministries with policy and resources. Budgets for the Council and Ministries for 2003–04 have been agreed with the Coalition. We are engaging Iraqi Ministers at political level. My right. hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary, for example, hosted the Iraqi Foreign Minister on 7 October, and my noble Friend, the Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean met members of the Governing Council when she visited Baghdad on 8 October. Our policy objective remains to hand over full authority to Iraqis as soon as is practicable.

Cyprus

Harold Best: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his assessment is of the political situation in Cyprus.

Denis MacShane: The British Government continue to believe that securing a comprehensive settlement in Cyprus by 1 May 2004, and enabling Cyprus to accede to the EU as a reunited island, is in the best interests of all Cypriots, and of the wider region. It is clear that a majority of people in both the Greek Cypriot and the Turkish Cypriot communities are also looking to their leaders to bring this about.
	The best way to do so would be for the parties to re-engage on the basis of the detailed settlement proposals presented by the UN Secretary General. The Annan Plan is balanced, practicable and compatible with the EU acquis-the EU has frequently reiterated its strong preference for accession by a reunited island and its willingness to accommodate the terms of a settlement negotiated through the UN process.
	President Papadopoulos has affirmed that he is ready to negotiate on this basis. Mr. Denktash's latest statements, however, suggest that he is opposed not only to the Annan Plan but also to the UNSG's Good Offices. We hope the Turkish side will find a way out of this rejectionist stance, in time to enable all Cypriots and Turkey itself to reap the benefits.

Democratic Republic of Congo

Harold Best: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his assessment is of the economic and political situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Chris Mullin: The political situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is encouraging. Apart from pockets of local violence the conflict has ended. The Transitional National Government in Kinshasa is in place. It has a huge task to exert its full authority throughout the country and to prepare for elections in two years, and it will have our full support.
	The DRC's economy has been devastated by years of poor government and, latterly, war. The DRC has made significant progress in stabilising the economy through a three year government economic reform programme supported by a US$786 million IMF poverty reduction and growth facility. For the first time in 13 years the economy achieved positive growth levels in 2002. The situation should improve further, with the decision on 23 July by the international financial institutions to reduce the DRC's total external debt by around 80 per cent.—some US$10 billion in monetary terms.

Democratic Republic of Congo

Harold Best: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he intends to visit the Democratic Republic of the Congo to discuss social reconstruction.

Chris Mullin: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has no immediate plans to visit the Democratic Republic of Congo. But he and Ministers from both the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department for International Development take every opportunity in contacts with the Transitional National Government to emphasise our readiness to support a range of post conflict development issues, including social reconstruction.

Somalia

Harold Best: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his assessment is of the current economic and political situation in Somalia.

Chris Mullin: While Somaliland has organised successful elections, which have brought stability to that region, the overall situation in Somalia remains unsettled without any form of effective Government.
	The Government continue to support the reconciliation talks between Somali leaders which are currently taking place in Nairobi under the auspices of the International Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD). We believe that these talks offer the best opportunity for securing a lasting peace.
	The Somaliland economy has been hit hard by the ban on livestock exports to Saudi Arabia, due to fears of transmission of Rift Valley Fever. The economy is dependent upon remittances from the diaspora.

Bechtel

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the contracts for consultancy and other work carried out by Bechtel in each year since 1997, stating in each case (a) the nature of the work, (b) the value of the contract and (c) the duration of the contract; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: We have not contracted with Bechtel during this period.

Public Diplomacy

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of the cost of promoting British branding and identity overseas in the last year for which figures are available; and what element of this expenditure promotes (a) Welsh, (b) Scottish and (c) Irish branding and identity as a distinct component of that of the United Kingdom as a whole.

Chris Mullin: Our public diplomacy strategy aims to understand and improve foreign perceptions of the UK. It is overseen by a Public Diplomacy Strategy board made up of a number of government departments, the devolved administrations and other organisations which have an interest in the UK's "brand".
	The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) public diplomacy expenditure in Financial Year 2003–04 includes:
	£1.9 million on a "Think UK" campaign in China, plus £360,000 for the development of campaigns in Central Europe (partnerships with accession states) and North America (UK Science and Technology) to run in 2004;
	A £2.4 million public diplomacy challenge fund which will support 81 projects in 51 different countries;
	£1.25 million for British Satellite News, supplying material to overseas broadcasters; £32. 35 million for scholarships to overseas students;
	£825,000 on a major FCO web infrastructure project, which includes www.i-uk.com; a central portal site to promote the UK overseas jointly with our public diplomacy partners (British Council, Trade Partners UK, Invest UK and VisitBritain);
	£797,201 on generic products, such as £292,461 on publications promoting the UK. Sums have also been allocated this FY for publications promoting specific regions:
	£12,750 on Scotland
	£25,300 on Wales
	£24,658 Northern Ireland
	£36,340 England
	£200,000 for public diplomacy activity promoting the UK's science and technology achievements overseas.
	In addition, the FCO provides grant-in-aid of:
	£166 million to the British Council
	£220 million to the BBC World Service
	Other than the publications on the Devolved Administrations, the FCO has not allocated separate expenditure for the promotion of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland overseas. However we actively encourage projects that promote their identity and they play an active role in our public diplomacy efforts, including participation in campaign steering groups as well as their representation on the Public Diplomacy Strategy Board.
	Our worldwide network of Press and Public Affairs Officers also play an important role in promoting the UK identity overseas through their everyday work.

Burma

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions the Government has had with (a) Germany, (b) Austria and (c) Italy on targeted EU sanctions against the Burmese Government.

Mike O'Brien: We regularly discuss sanctions and other possible EU measures against the Burmese Regime with all our EU partners at official level. The EU Common Position on Burma was strengthened on 16 June. We stand ready to respond proportionately to changes that occur in Burma.

Colombia (Human Rights)

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government is taking to ensure that basic human rights in Colombia are observed; if he will make it his policy to support the call for an International Labour Organisation Commission of Inquiry into Colombia; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: The London Meeting on International Support for Colombia in July impressed upon the Colombian Government the importance of human rights. This was reflected in the London Declaration issued after the Meeting. I reaffirmed our position when I met the Colombian Foreign Minister in the margins of the UN General Assembly in September. I made clear that implementation of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights' recommendations on Colombia must be a prime concern in the Colombian Government's pursuit of security and stability in Colombia. Representatives in Bogota of the donor countries who attended the London Meeting will monitor progress.
	The UK Government believe that improving workers' rights in Colombia is best achieved through a supportive approach. It considers the International Labour Organisation's Special Technical Cooperation Programme for Colombia an effective way of bringing about change. We do not think an ILO Commission of Inquiry at this stage would contribute to the Technical Co-operation process. We continue to monitor progress on the Programme, and will continue to discuss with the Colombian Government how best the international community can help improve workers' rights and the situation trade unionists face.

Jamaica

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many Jamaican nationals (a) applied for visitor's visas and (b) were refused in the last 12 months for which figures are available.

Chris Mullin: The visa regime for Jamaican nationals was introduced on 9 January this year. From the period 9 January to 9 October, 21,328 Jamaican nationals applied for visas to visit the UK at our Embassies and High Commissions overseas. Of these, 8,340 were refused entry clearance.

Surplus Armaments

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent steps have been taken to encourage developing countries to destroy surplus stocks of (a) illegally and (b) legally held armaments.

Denis MacShane: The UK believes the weapons of greatest concern in developing countries are landmines and small arms and light weapons (SALW). It is on those weapons that we focus our efforts.
	The UK is at the forefront of international efforts to curb the problem of small arms proliferation and the damage they cause. The UK fully supports the UN Programme of Action on SALW and the OSCE document on SALW which commit states to dispose, preferably by destruction, of small arms stocks that are surplus to national requirements.
	The UK strategy on small arms and light weapons is supported by the £20 million (2001–04) SALW Global Conflict Prevention Pool jointly funded by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Department for International Development and the Ministry of Defence. The UK has given the United Nations Development Programme £7.5 million over three years to help fund a global programme of weapons collection, stockpile management, capacity building and destruction. In addition, the FCO has also directly funded SALW destruction projects in five developing countries including part funding for an EU SALW project in Cambodia.
	The Government spends approximately £15 million per year on humanitarian mine programmes. The Department for International Development is currently funding mine action in Iraq, Afghanistan, Sudan, Cambodia, Angola and Georgia. We also actively work towards the destruction of anti-personnel landmines by encouraging states which have not become party to the Ottawa Convention to ratify or accede at the earliest opportunity. Once party to the Convention, states are legally obliged to destroy stockpiled anti-personnel landmines and to clear mine-affected areas within a given timeframe.

Switzerland

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the treatment (a) British and (b) other EU nationals receive from the Swiss justice system; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Mullin: As in other countries we would expect any British or other EU nationals to be treated in accordance with the accepted standards under international law. We are currently unaware of any particular concerns about the treatment British nationals receive under the Swiss justice system.

Switzerland

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of bilateral agreements on the free movement of labour and trade, between the EU and Switzerland; what steps the Government is taking to ensure these agreements are adhered to; and if he will make a statement.

Denis MacShane: The bilateral agreements on trade provide an effective framework for trade between the EU and Switzerland. Switzerland is the EU's most important trading partner after the United States. In 2002 Switzerland was Britain's fourth biggest market for goods outside the EU with exports valued at £3.3 billion. The UK is Switzerland's fifth biggest export market, valued at £4.9 billion in 2002.
	The 1999 Agreement relating to free movement of workers between the EU and Switzerland allows member states and Switzerland to maintain quotas on granting residence to Swiss or EU workers respectively for a transition period up to 2014. The Agreement has been operating smoothly. The UK, like many member states, has chosen not to maintain such quotas, in the interests of reaping the full economic benefits of free movement of labour. Negotiations are now underway to amend this Agreement to take account of EU Enlargement.
	The Commission is directly responsible for monitoring the bilateral Agreements and does so through a framework of Joint Committees that meet at least once a month. The Government follows this process and can raise any relevant issues in Council Working Groups in Brussels.

TREASURY

Job Numbers

Hugo Swire: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) private sector and (b) public sector jobs there were in the UK in each year since 1997.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Hugo Swire, dated 20 October 2003
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question about jobs in the private and public sectors in the UK since 1997. (132653)
	The attached table shows the job levels in the public and private sectors from August 1997 to August 2002 (the latest available data).
	
		Job Levels by Main Sector in the UK, 1997–2002 -- Thousands
		
			  August 1997 August 1998 August 1999 August 2000 August 2001 August 2002 
		
		
			 Public Sector 4,954 4,944 5,094 5,094 5,212 5,298 
			 Private Sector 22,811 23,083 23,272 23,537 23,521 23,610 
			 Total 27,765 28,027 28,366 28,631 28,733 28,908 
		
	
	Source:Labour Force Survey and Administrative Returns from public bodies

Stamp Duty

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations have been received by his Department from businesses regarding the proposed change in stamp duty.

Ruth Kelly: Extensive consultation with external representative bodies has been conducted both before Finance Act 2003 and after. Representations have also been received and considered from individuals, companies and organisations affected by the proposals and many useful suggestions have been made. These have been used to inform decision making, one example being the amendments I am today proposing to the Stamp Duty Land Tax treatment of leases, where continued consultation, as promised in the Budget, has helped shape the revisions to the Finance Act 2003.

Stamp Duty

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate his Department has made of costs to business arising from the proposed change in stamp duty; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: The costs to business were included in the red book for the 2003 Budget.

Correspondence

Anthony Steen: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Totnes of 15 July concerning Mr. Ron Warner of Stoke Fleming, South Devon, acknowledged on 17 July (ref:/31877/2003).

Dawn Primarolo: I replied to the hon. Member on 28 August.

Debt

Michael Meacher: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the level of debt as a percentage of disposable income was (a) in general and (b) broken down by social class; and what the level of debt as a percentage of disposable income was in each of the last 10 years.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Michael Meacher, dated 20 October 2003
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question on the level of debt as a percentage of disposable income in each of the last 10 years. (132453)
	The available information is shown in the table below. The data for debt (households' total financial liabilities) and disposable income (households' gross disposable income) used in the calculations are national accounts series for the combined household and non-profit institutions serving households (NPISH) sectors. The accounts for the household and NPISH sectors are currently combined; separate estimates are not available.
	Information broken down by social class is not available.
	
		Household debt as a percentage of household disposable income
		
			  
		
		
			  
			 1993 106.5 
			 1994 107.5 
			 1995 106.6 
			 1996 104.9 
			 1997 104.8 
			 1998 108.5 
			 1999 111.7 
			 2000 113.3 
			 2001 116.8 
			 2002 127.6

Equitable Life

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the timetable is for the completion and publication of the Penrose Investigation into the origins of the problems surrounding Equitable Life; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: The timetable for completing his report is a matter for Lord Penrose.
	Lord Penrose's report will be published as soon as practicable after it is received.

Family Incomes

Keith Bradley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the net income of a family with two dependent children aged 18 and 12 with a gross income of (a) £13,000 a year, (b) £13,500 a year, (c) £14,000 a year, (d) £14,500 a year, (e) £15,000 a year, (f) £15,500 a year and (g) £16,000 a year; and what assessment he has made of the sources of that net income.

Ruth Kelly: Given annual gross earnings, a single full-time earner family with two dependent children aged 12 and 18 in full time education would have an annual net household income in 2003–04 that is tabulated as follows:
	
		£
		
			 Gross Earnings Income Tax National Insurance Child Benefit Working Tax Credit Child Tax Credit Total Tax Credits Net Income 
		
		
			 13,000 1,610 921 1,394 707 3,418 4,125 15,988 
			 13,500 1,724 978 1,394 516 3,418 3,934 16,145 
			 14,000 1,827 1,030 1,394 344 3,418 3,762 16,287 
			 14,500 1,941 1,087 1,394 152 3,418 3,570 16,444 
			 15,000 2,044 1,138 1,394 0 3,398 3,398 16,585 
			 15,500 2,159 1,195 1,394 0 3,206 3,206 16,742 
			 16,000 2,273 1,253 1,394 0 3,015 3,015 16,899

Industrial and Provident Societies

Linda Gilroy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many representations he has received from hon. Members regarding the audit and account provisions for industrial and provident societies.

Ruth Kelly: The Government has received a number of representations on this and other issues relating to industrial and provident societies. We are considering these as part of our ongoing work on the industrial and provident society sector.

Iraq

Chris Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what financial provision he has so far made for the cost of the UK's contribution to (a) the conduct of active hostilities in Iraq earlier this year, (b) the provision of troops subsequently and (c) the financing of reconstruction in Iraq.

Paul Boateng: As the Chancellor said in his 2003 Budget statement, "I can confirm that I have set aside £3 billion, in a special reserve available to the Ministry of Defence so that our troops continue to be properly equipped and given the resources that they deserve and have a right to expect." Official Report, 9 April 2003, column 271.
	It is too early to provide total costs of the military campaign in Iraq. However, the Ministry of Defence estimate for the preparatory phase, up to the point military operations began, at around £700 million.
	(c) In April 2003, the Department for International Development set aside £210 million for reconstruction and humanitarian work in Iraq. £154 million of this has been allocated to UN agencies, the Red Cross and Red Crescent movement and NGOs. A further £60 million was set aside by the Chancellor in the Budget to support the work of the UN on the reconstruction and development of Iraq. DFID also provides 19 per cent. of European Community (EC) funding for Iraq. The total EC commitment to Iraq currently stands at £100 million.

Pensions

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer from which organisations he received representations on retirement pensions in the pre-budget consultation exercise last year, broken down by number of items received.

Ruth Kelly: The Chancellor receives representations from a wide range of organisations and interest groups on many topics which are relevant to retirement pensions. There is no central record of those making representations or of the number of items received from each of them.

Pool Re

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the annual premiums collected and payments made have been in each year since the establishment of Pool Re; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: Pool Re was established in 1993. The information requested is as follows:
	
		
			  Gross written premiums(£ million) Paid claims 
		
		
			 1993 222.1 47.6 
			 1994 389.3 93.2 
			 1995 195.8 86.4 
			 1996 287.2 94.3 
			 1997 318.8 124.9 
			 1998 173.2 95.6 
			 1999 50.8 42.4 
			 2000 56.0 14.3 
			 2001 70.8 3.0 
			 2003 142.9 3.1 
			 Total 1,906.9 604.8

Oil Revenue

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the Government's revenue receipts have been on a monthly basis since January 2002 from (a) sales of petrol, (b) sales of petroleum products and (c) North Sea oil production; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Boateng: Monthly data for all hydrocarbon oil duties and Petroleum Revenue tax receipts is available on the Customs and Excise and Inland Revenue respective websites (www.uktradeinfo.com and www. inlandrevenue.gov.uk). Information on revenue receipts from North Sea oil production is only available on an annual basis, again from the Inland Revenue website.

Tax Burden

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the projected change in the overall tax burden as a percentage of GDP for 2003–04.

Paul Boateng: The projected change in net taxes and social security contributions as a percentage of GDP in 2003–04, as shown in Table C10 of Budget 2003, is due to a number of factors, including:
	The return to trend of financial company profits from their current depressed levels;
	Normal fiscal drag; and
	Measures announced in Budget 2002.

Unemployment (Wirral, South)

Ben Chapman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on levels of unemployment in Wirral, South since 1997.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Ben Chapman, dated 20 October 2003
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question regarding the levels of unemployment in Wirral South since 1997. (132867)
	The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles statistics of unemployment from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) following the internationally standard International Labour Organisation definition. However the survey sample size is too small to provide estimates for the Wirral South Parliamentary Constituency. ONS also compiles statistics of those claiming Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) for local areas including Parliamentary Constituencies.
	In September 1997, the number of JSA claimants in the Wirral South Parliamentary Constituency stood at 1,776. The corresponding figure for September 2003, the latest date for which information is available, is 851.

Banking

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what progress has been made in implementing the findings of the Cruickshank report on United Kingdom banking; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: There have been a number of recent developments.
	Following a recommendation of the Julius Banking Consumer Codes Review Group, Professor Elaine Kempson independently reviewed the Banking code in November 2002. The majority of her recommendations were accepted and the new Banking Code came into force in March of this year.
	Secondly, the OFT have agreed to a number of undertakings with the eight main clearing banks to address the findings of the Competition Commission Report into SME banking in March 2002. These remedies will make it easier for customers to shop around and to move accounts between banks. In addition the four leading clearing banks have agreed to offer SME customers in England and Wales an account paying interest of at least the Bank of England base rate minus 2.5 per cent., or a current account free of money transmission charges.
	Thirdly, the Government will make an announcement shortly on the commitment to review the Financial Services and Markets Act two years after it came into force.
	Finally, the Government remains committed to legislating to give the OFT new powers to ensure effective competition in payment systems, and will do so as soon as Parliamentary time allows.

VAT (Children's Clothes)

Andrew Turner: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what guarantees have been obtained from the European Commission that zero-rating of children's clothes for VAT purposes may continue beyond 2007;
	(2)  what research he has collated on the cost of (a) children's and (b) adults' clothing in each EU country.

John Healey: The Government does not need guarantees from the European Commission about the future of the UK's VAT zero rates. Any amendment to the EC Sixth VAT Directive must be agreed unanimously by all member states in the Council of Ministers, and the Government will not agree to changes which go against our national interests and social objectives.
	The Government remains committed to retaining the UK's zero rates on children's clothing and footwear.
	Data on the cost of children's and adults' clothing in the UK is routinely gathered by the Office for National Statistics and by the European Commission. In addition, Customs and Excise have collected pricing information on children's and adults' clothing and footwear from UK retailers.
	This evidence shows that the benefits of the VAT zero rates for children's clothing and footwear in the UK are passed on to consumers.

Woodlands

Michael Meacher: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list woodlands which are in receipt of tax relief on condition of providing public access; what checks have been made in each case in the last year on whether public access is being provided; and what the result of the check was in each case.

Dawn Primarolo: Conditional exemption is not granted to woodlands as such, though many of the landholdings which have been exempted on account of their outstanding scenic, historic or scientific interest are wooded in whole or part. Details of conditionally exempt land, and the access available to them, are available on the Inland Revenue's website, at: www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/heritage The website invites members of the public to report any difficulties they encounter in visiting exempted property: the Revenue cannot recall any recent instances of problems with access to woodland. The Countryside Agency and its counterparts make inspection visits on the Revenue's behalf at least once every five years to check that owners are complying with the undertakings they gave to secure exemption.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Milk

Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list for dairy farmers within Shrewsbury and Atcham the average milk price in each month since 1997.

Ben Bradshaw: We do not hold milk price information for specific areas of the UK. However, we do have national statistics for the monthly farmgate price of milk in the UK and the average monthly retail price paid by the consumer in the UK. These figures since January 1997 are as follows:
	
		UK farmgate prices in pence per litre
		
			  1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 
		
		
			 January 24.16 20.17 19.31 16.79 18.32 18.79 17.69 
			 February 23.79 19.99 19.03 16.62 18.18 18.31 17.66 
			 March 23.74 19.90 18.98 16.64 17.88 18.00 17.39 
			 April 20.70 17.66 17.56 15.27 18.45 15.99 16.85 
			 May 19.76 16.69 16.42 14.63 17.90 14.88 16.00 
			 June 20.91 17.74 17.23 15.35 18.70 15.37 16.52 
			 July 24.08 20.74 19.79 17.64 20.45 16.58 18.22 
			 August 23.89 20.87 19.83 17.93 20.86 17.00 — 
			 September 22.99 20.06 19.17 17.52 20.70 17.13 — 
			 October 21.03 20.22 18.12 18.81 20.46 18.15 — 
			 November 20.60 19.68 17.69 18.60 20.05 18.11 — 
			 December 20.30 19.30 17.36 18.26 19.60 17.75 — 
		
	
	Note
	Surveys run by Defra, SEERAD and DARD including retrospective bonus payments made by purchasers.
	
		Average retail price of milk in pence per pint
		
			  1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 
		
		
			 January 36 35 34 34 35 37 
			 February 35 34 34 34 35 36 
			 March 35 34 35 34 36 36 
			 April 35 34 35 34 36 36 
			 May 35 34 34 34 37 36 
			 June 35 34 34 34 37 36 
			 July 35 34 34 34 37 36 
			 August 35 34 34 34 37 36 
			 September 35 34 34 34 37 36 
			 October 35 34 34 35 37 — 
			 November 35 34 34 35 37 — 
			 December 35 34 34 35 37 — 
			
			 Annual average 35 34 34 34 37 — 
		
	
	Notes
	Average prices estimates include prices of delivered milk and shop bought milk. However, 80 per cent. price range includes only shop bought milk.
	From February 2002, the average price for milk is calculated as the average price of one pint of delivered milk and the one pint equivalent of two pints of shop bought milk. However, the 80 per cent. price range (which is the range of prices with the top 10 per cent. and the bottom 10 per cent. excluded) only includes shop bought milk.
	Source
	National Statistics

Beef Exports

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on progress in United Kingdom export negotiations to free up the export market for (a) beef and (b) live cattle.

Ben Bradshaw: The Secretary of State has discussed beef exports with Commissioner Byrne on a number of occasions, most recently on 22 September at the informal Agriculture Council at Taormina. Defra officials have also had regular meetings with the Commission officials. The Commission has sought advice from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) on amending the Date-based Export Scheme (DBES) and our methodology of scaling up testing results to support our claim that restrictions should be lifted so that the UK can trade on the same basis as other member states. An EFSA Opinion is expected in early 2004.

Large Combustion Plants Directive

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what assessment the Department has made of the impact on jobs in the deep mine coal industry of the implementation of the Large Combustion Plants Directive through (a) a national emission reduction plan and (b) emission limit values as proposed on the present consultation;
	(2)  what analysis the Department has made of the impact on the deep-mined coal industry of the implementation of the Large Combustion Plants Directive by (a) a national emission reduction plan and (b) emission limit values as proposed in the current consultation.

Ben Bradshaw: The Government has just completed a consultation on a proposal to implement the Large Combustion Plants Directive for plants first licensed before July 1987 using a national plan. Officials have discussed the potential impact of the alternative implementation routes with representatives of the UK coal industry and have received consultation responses from the Confederation of UK Coal Producers and other bodies and organisations with an interest in UK coal mining. The Government will take a decision on the most appropriate implementation approach after considering all of the consultation responses.

Large Combustion Plants Directive

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what modelling the Department has conducted of the financial dynamics of a sulphur dioxide trading scheme resulting from the implementation of the Large Combustion Plants Directive by a national emission reduction plan approach.

Ben Bradshaw: The Government has just completed a consultation on a proposal to implement the Large Combustion Plants Directive for plants first licensed before July 1987 using a national plan. Analysis conducted for my Department suggested that such an approach would lead to significant cost-savings when compared to the alternative implementation approach. The financial dynamics of a trading scheme will depend on the decisions of operators of plants who take part in such emissions-trading. An outline of how such a trading scheme might operate was included in the consultation document but further consideration would be needed before the scheme could be introduced.

Large Combustion Plants Directive

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she has had with (a) the UK mined coal industry and (b) trade unions about the likely impact of the Large Combustion Plants Directive implementation options proposed in the current consultation.

Ben Bradshaw: Officials have discussed the potential impact of the alternative implementation routes for the Large Combustion Plants Directive with representatives of the UK coal industry, who have also responded formally to the Government's consultation paper. Consultations closed on 29 September but some responses are still being received. The Government will take a decision on the most appropriate implementation approach after considering the responses to the consultation.

Large Combustion Plants Directive

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she expects to announce the Government's decision on the implementation options of the Large Combustion Plants Directive.

Ben Bradshaw: The Government will take a decision on the most appropriate implementation approach after considering the responses to the consultation. If the UK is to adopt the national plan approach, the plan has to be with the European Commission by 27 November 2003.

Animal Movements

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on EU proposals in respect of improved controls for the welfare of animals during transit.

Ben Bradshaw: We welcome publication of the Commission's proposals. They were overdue and now provide the opportunity to seek improvements in many areas, in particular, journey times, vehicle standards and enforcement. We have consulted widely and we are playing a full part in the forthcoming negotiations.

Animal Welfare

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what information regarding animal welfare (a) on the journey and (b) at the final destination is requested by the animal exports division before authorisations for exports are granted; and if she will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: Before livestock are exported, transporters must submit a Route Plan setting out details of the proposed journey. Officials check that the transporter is authorised, that the proposed journey times are within the maximum allowable for the species and that all necessary rest, watering and feeding breaks are included. If assembly centres, staging points or slaughterhouses are included in the planned journey, staff check that these are EU approved premises. The use of Staging Points also requires the transporter to provide a statement to the effect that the necessary health requirements will be met there and that the animals are booked into the premises on the dates specified on the Route Plan.
	Once staff are satisfied that the proposed journey appears to meet these conditions, the plan is sent to a Local Veterinary Inspector. The animals are then inspected to ensure they are fit for their intended journey and that they meet the health requirements of transit and destination countries.
	Supervised loadings of vehicles may be carried out to ensure only fit and healthy animals are loaded, that the vehicle is suitable and that stocking densities are correct. Animals for slaughter or fattening may be inspected on arrival at the port or transfer onto a vessel.
	These checks are carried out scrupulously and only when all have been satisfactorily completed will the animals be allowed to start their journey.

Atrazine

Michael Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to ban atrazine in the UK.

Alun Michael: Atrazine is to be withdrawn from use as an agricultural pesticide throughout the European Community, following a full scientific review. Products containing atrazine will be withdrawn over an 18-month period which will begin on formal adoption of the relevant European Commission decision, which we anticipate within the next few months. However, certain 'essential uses' will be permitted until the end of 2007. The essential uses agreed for the United Kingdom are for sweetcorn and forestry.

Fisheries

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list the fishing stop orders made in the last 12 months.

Ben Bradshaw: No orders have been made in the last 12 months under the provisions of the Sea Fish (Conservation) Act 1967 prohibiting fishing for specified quota stocks. However, individual groups of fishermen, including the under10 metre fleet, have been prohibited from fishing for specified stocks through the variation of their fishing vessel licences.

GM Crop Trials

Michael Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list the chemical weedkillers used in the farm-scale evaluation trials on the (a) GM and (b) non-GM part of the field; and what the extent of use of each herbicide was.

Elliot Morley: holding answer 14 October 2003
	The results of the farm scale evaluations of three spring-sown GM crops—including details of herbicides used, and the extent to which they were used—were published on 16 October by the Scientific Steering Committee and the research team that has overseen and carried out the evaluations. Copies of the results will be placed in the Library.

Illegal Chemicals (Agricultural Produce)

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the role of her Department in preventing the importation of agricultural produce which has been subjected to illegal chemicals during its production.

Melanie Johnson: I have been asked to reply.
	The role of the Food Standard Agency (FSA) regarding importation of agricultural produce includes ensuring necessary action is taken to protect public health where the use of illegal pesticides or veterinary medicines is detected. The FSA receives information on these from the European Commission and from surveillance carried out by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). The FSA can also carry out its own surveillance where there are concerns for public health. The FSA and local authorities have regulatory powers to prevent food that poses a threat to human health from entering the food chain or to withdraw it from sale.
	All food products of animal origin being imported to the United Kingdom from non-European Union countries are subject to documentary and identity checks at designated border inspection posts by an official veterinary surgeon. A percentage of consignments are subjected to a physical check, which may include laboratory tests for residues from illegal chemicals. These controls have been enhanced on certain produce from countries with known chemical residue problems. Products of non-animal origin are subject to routine inspection at ports of entry and may be examined, sampled and detained.
	Products of animal origin from other EU member states must have been produced in accordance with harmonised EU rules for hygienic production. Such products are in free circulation in the EU as part of the EU single market, but are subject to inspection inland as part of routine enforcement and surveillance activities.
	Given recent concerns over import controls, the FSA is taking forward a range of measures to improve the co-ordination and delivery of local authority inspection of imported foodstuffs and products of animal origin at ports and inland.

Special Advisers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on how many occasions between 31 March 2002 and 31 March 2003 (a) departmental and (b) non-departmental special advisers have travelled abroad in an official capacity; what places were visited; and how much each visit cost.

Margaret Beckett: Between 31 March 2002 and 31 March 2003, Defra special advisers travelled abroad in an official capacity on 12 occasions at an average cost of approximately £2,179 per trip. The countries visited were Belgium, Luxembourg, France, South Africa, Indonesia, USA, Canada and India.
	All travel by special advisers is undertaken fully in accordance with the guidelines set out in the Ministerial Code and the Civil Service Management Code.

Waste Management

Paddy Tipping: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list those individuals and organisations who responded to her consultation paper on the Large Combustion Plant Directive; and if she will place a summary of the responses in the Library.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 16 October 2003
	Some 68 substantive responses have been received so far from individuals, businesses, trade associations representing industry sectors, environmental groups, regulators, and Government agencies. A list of consultation respondents follows. In addition, some 1,550 individual letters have been received so far from employees of the coal mining and associated industries. I will place a summary in the Library once we have completed our analysis of the responses.
	Respondents to the LCPD Consultation (as at 10 October 2003):
	1. AEP Energy Services UK Generation Ltd.
	2. AES Drax
	3. AES Kilroot Power Station
	4. Alcan Smelting and Power UK
	5. All Party Parliamentary Coalfield Communities Group, Michael Clapham MP
	6. Association of Electricity Producers
	7. ATH Resources
	8. BASF plc
	9. BP Chemicals Saltend
	10. BPB Paperboard
	11. Brian Ricketts
	12. British Energy
	13. British Sugar
	14. Brunner Monday
	15. Business Healthcare
	16. Ciba
	17. Coal Authority
	18. Coal UK
	19. Coalfield Communities Campaign (CCC)
	20. Combustion Engineering Association (CEA)
	21. Combined Heat and Power Association (CHPA)
	22. Confederation of Paper Industries
	23. Confederation of UK Coal Producers (COAL PRO)
	24. Confederation of British Industry (CBI)
	25. ConocaPhillips Humber Refinery
	26. Corus
	27. Dakia
	28. Derek Lohmann
	29. Drax Power
	30. Dupont Invista Maydown site
	31. EDF Energy plc
	32. Electricity Association (EA)
	33. Enron Teesside Operations Ltd.
	34. Environment Agency (EA)
	35. Equality Commission
	36. Friends of the Earth
	37. H.J. Banking (Mining) Ltd.
	38. HRM Resources Ltd.
	39. Hudson Transport
	40. Huntsman Tioxide, Grimsby Site
	41. lneos Chlor
	42. lneos Chlor Silicas
	43. lnnogy plc
	44. International Power plc
	45. J. Fenton and Sons (Contractors) Ltd.
	46. John Grogan MP
	47. Joint Nature Conservation Committee
	48. Kodak
	49. LAW Mining Ltd.
	50. Mayor of London and Greater London Authority
	51. National Society for Clean Air (NSCA)
	52. Northern Ireland Electric
	53. Ofgem
	54. Petroleum Industry Association Ltd. (UKPIA)
	55. Powergen
	56. Rugeley Power Station
	57. Scottish Power Generation Ltd.
	58. Slough Heat and Power Ltd.
	59. Solid Fuel Association
	60. The Coal Authority
	61. The Environmental Industries Commission
	62. The Scotch Whisky Association
	63. Total Lindsey Oil Refinery
	64. Total Milford Haven Oil Refinery
	65. UK Coal
	66. UK Coal Mining Ltd.
	67. UK Steel
	68. + one response that asked to be kept confidential.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Broadcasting Impartiality

Harold Best: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what steps she is taking to ensure that television and radio channels broadcasting in the United Kingdom maintain political impartiality;
	(2)  what actions she is taking to ensure that television and radio channels in the UK maintain political impartiality.

Estelle Morris: The Government strongly supports impartiality in the broadcast media and there are relevant provisions in legislation to ensure that television and radio channels broadcasting in the UK maintain political impartiality.
	Responsibility for what is broadcast on television and radio rests with the broadcasters and the broadcasting regulatory bodies—the Governors of the BBC, the Independent Television Commission, the Welsh Fourth Channel Authority and the Radio Authority. The regulators' codes of practice place a requirement on broadcasters to treat controversial subjects with due accuracy and impartiality, both in news services and in the more general field of programmes dealing with matters of current public policy or industrial controversy. It is for the regulatory bodies, not Government, to decide whether any particular broadcaster is or is not complying with its obligations regarding impartiality.
	Under the Communications Act 2003 the Office of Communications (Ofcom) will have similar responsibilities for maintaining impartiality from the end of this year. The BBC Governors will retain their responsibility, under the Charter and Agreement, for maintaining the BBC's impartiality.

Football (Violent Behaviour)

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what representations she has made to (a) the Football Association and (b) the Football League about violent behaviour by professional footballers during matches; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: Professional footballers have a duty to ensure that their behaviour on the field of play is of the highest standard. I wrote to the chairmen of all 92 league clubs before the start of the 2002–03 season to remind them of their responsibilities.
	Since then, I have discussed the issues raised by player misbehaviour, and the responses of the football authorities, on a number of occasions during my regular and informal meetings with the management teams of the Premier and Football leagues.

Public Libraries

Harold Best: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps the Government are taking to ensure the long-term survival of public libraries in England and Wales.

Estelle Morris: In February 2003 this Department published "Framework for the Future", setting out the Department's vision for the future of public libraries in England during the next 10 years. "Framework for the Future" identified three central themes vital to the further development of public libraries, the promotion of reading and learning, improving access to digital skills and services and helping to build and improve community and civic values.
	Resource, The Council for Museums, Archives and Libraries, has recently published a three year action plan setting out a range of programmes to help libraries achieve the vision set out in "Framework for the Future". I am arranging for copies of this document to be placed in the Libraries of both Houses. DCMS and Resource will work closely with all stakeholders to ensure its success.
	Responsibility for public library policy in Wales is devolved to the Welsh Assembly.

SCOTLAND

European Year of Disabled People

Martin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what initiatives his Department (a) has undertaken and (b) is taking to commemorate 2003 as the European Year of Disabled people.

Anne McGuire: The Scotland Office has worked with the Disability Rights Commission, Capability Scotland and the RNIB on access issues for the Scottish Parliament elections. Additionally, my right hon. Friend, the former Secretary of State, and I have visited two of the three Scottish regional initiatives supported by the European Commission and the Department for Work and Pensions as part of EYDP.

Manufacturing

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland pursuant to his answer of 16 September 2003, Official Report, column 640W, to the hon. Member for Galloway and Upper Nithsdale, on manufacturing, why he estimates the number of people employed in the manufacturing industry in Scotland has fallen since 1997; and what his Department is doing to reverse this trend.

Anne McGuire: Scotland's manufacturing sector, along with that of other advanced economies, has experienced falling output in recent times, due to the global slowdown and re-structuring in key industries such as electronics. Opportunities to grow manufacturing are recognised within the Government's Manufacturing Strategy, published in May 2002, which identified seven key areas of activity. Action is being taken in all of these areas to help UK manufacturers improve productivity in difficult global conditions.
	The Scotland Office will continue to work with the Scottish Executive and a wide range of manufacturing interests on initiatives such as the Scottish Manufacturing Steering Group.

Microsoft (Licensing Fees)

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much was paid to Microsoft in licensing fees by his Department and its agencies in each of the last three years; and how much has been budgeted for (a) 2003–04 and (b) 2004–05.

Anne McGuire: Information Technology systems and support for the Scotland Office are provided through the Scottish Executive. Details of Microsoft licensing fees for the office are not held separately and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Official Engagements

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland pursuant to his answer of 15 September 2003, Official Report, column 575W, to the hon. Member for Galloway and Upper Nithsdale (Mr. Duncan), on official engagements, if he will list the Scotland Office official engagements he has undertaken since his appointment.

Alistair Darling: I have undertaken a number of both public and private engagements. It is not appropriate therefore to list them.

Winter Fuel Allowance

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many pensioner households are receiving winter fuel allowance in (a) the North East of Scotland and (b) Gordon.

Anne McGuire: For winter 2002–03, 70,435 households in the North East of Scotland (taken to include Aberdeen Central, Aberdeen North, Aberdeen South, Banff and Buchan, Gordon, Moray and West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine constituencies) received winter fuel payments. In Gordon, winter fuel payments were made to 10,045 households for winter 2002–03.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Appointments

Mark Oaten: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the people appointed to ad hoc posts within his Department bearing the titles of advocate, tsar, adviser, champion and comparable titles since May 1997; what their job title is or was; what their role is or was; whether they were or are being paid; what the total costs of each such person was in each financial year, including expenses and benefits; what the expected cost of each such person is in 2003–04; to whom they are accountable; and if he will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister was created as a separate department on 29 May 2002. In the period since then, the Office has employed three Special Advisers, as defined in paragraph 50 of the Ministerial Code: Joan Hammell, Ian McKenzie, and Paul Hackett (part-time). Their role is to advise the Deputy Prime Minister and they are accountable to him for their decisions and actions. These are paid appointments. Under Exemption 12 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information, remuneration details are not disclosed in order to protect the privacy of the individuals concerned.

Building Control Performance StandardsAdvisory Group

David Taylor: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what process governs membership of the Building Control Performance Standards Advisory Group; and if he will list the current membership.

Phil Hope: The advisory group was set up in May 2000 under the terms of a Memorandum of Understanding entered into by the Association of Consultant Approved Inspectors (ACAI), the Construction Industry Council (CIC), the District Surveyors Association (DSA), the Local Government Association (LGA), the Welsh Assembly Government (WAG) and the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions. The Memorandum of Understanding provides that the six signatory bodies nominate a total of 10 members. In addition, the Building Regulations Advisory Committee (BRAC) nominates one of its members. The Chairman of the Advisory Group is appointed by the Minister at the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister responsible for building regulations, after consultation between the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and the other five signatory bodies. The Memorandum of Understanding also provides for there to be members representing building users and construction clients, though these seats are not currently filled.
	The current membership is as follows:
	Chairman:
	Michael Finn FRICS
	Members:
	ACAI: Tony Threadgold, Paul Timmins
	CIC: Stuart Holt, David Lush
	DSA: John Leney, Adrian Prest
	LGA: Tony Hough, Geoff Luker
	ODPM: John Thompson
	WAG: Philip Gardiner
	BRAC: Paul Allen

Compensation Claims

John Battle: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much compensation has been paid in claims against local government in each year since 1990.

Nick Raynsford: The information requested is not held centrally, and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Councillors

Mark Hoban: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to bring forward legislation to extend the tenure of councillors.

Nick Raynsford: On 6 May 2003 the Government announced its intention to move the date of the English local council and Greater London authority elections in 2004 from 6 May to 10 June. This will enable them to be combined with the European Parliamentary elections and provide convenience to electors, enabling them to participate in all the elections at the same time rather than voting twice in a short period of time. As a consequence of combining these elections, the term of office for those sitting councillors in England affected will be extended by five weeks with that for councillors elected on 10 June 2004 being reduced by five weeks. The Government will shortly be consulting key stakeholders on draft legislation which facilitates these intentions. More generally there are no plans at present to bring forward legislation to extend the tenure of Councillors but the Terms of Reference of the current review of electoral cycles in local government, being undertaken by the Electoral Commission, includes identifying options for change which may include, if appropriate, options involving changes to councillor's terms of office

Councillors

John Cryer: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will (a) estimate expenditure on councillors' allowances in each London borough in the past five years and (b) estimate expenditure on councillors' allowances in the financial year 2003–04 within each London borough.

Nick Raynsford: The information requested is not held centrally, and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Essex Fire and Rescue Service

Mark Francois: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many regular firefighters were employed by the Essex Fire and Rescue Service on 1 September.

Nick Raynsford: Figures supplied by the Essex Fire and Rescue Service show that there were 933 whole-time firefighters employed on 31 August 2003.

Light Pollution (Astronomy)

Phyllis Starkey: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he will respond to the relevant recommendations of the Science and Technology Committee report on Light Pollution and Astronomy.

Keith Hill: The Government will aim to provide its response to the Science and Technology Select Committee report on Light Pollution and Astronomy within two months of the report's publication, as recommended by the Procedure Committee.

Local Government Finance

Edward Davey: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what estimate he has made of the revenue which would be raised by local authorities from charging (a) 100 per cent. council tax rate and (b) 100 per cent. business rate on long-term empty properties.

Nick Raynsford: About £320 million per year would be raised by English local authorities if 100 per cent. council tax were charged on all long-term empty domestic property other than those subject to exemptions. This represents an additional £160 million because there is currently a 50 per cent. discount on council tax for long-term empty domestic properties. There are, in addition, some categories of long-term empty domestic property that are exempt from council tax. Figures for the revenue which would be raised if these exemptions were ended are not available.
	The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister does not have sufficiently detailed records to be able to calculate what would be raised if long-term empty domestic property were subject to non-domestic rates rather than council tax.
	About £1 billion per year in rates revenue in England is currently foregone as a result of reliefs granted on empty non-domestic properties. This comprises 100 per cent. mandatory relief on all non-domestic properties for the first three months for which they are vacant and, after three months: 100 per cent. mandatory relief for certain properties including factories and warehouses, 90 per cent. mandatory relief for charities and 50 per cent. mandatory relief for other properties.

Mobile Phone Masts

Bob Russell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many planning appeals by mobile telephone companies against the refusal of local authorities for telephone masts have been made in each of the last three years for which figures are available; and of these how many were (a) successful and (b) turned down.

Keith Hill: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The following information relates to appeal decisions about telecommunications development generally.
	
		
			  Received Withdrawn Allowed Dismissed Total decisions 
		
		
			 2000–01 135 7 81 39 120 
			 2001–02 284 18 89 69 158 
			 2002–03 232 46 164 123 287 
			 2003–04(4) 116 0 44 26 70 
		
	
	(4) Up to 17 October 2003
	Note:
	All figures relate to the year in which the appeal was received, not necessarily the year it was decided.

Mobile Phone Masts

Bob Russell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will advise the Planning Inspectorate to give greater weight to the views of local authorities when determining planning appeals made by mobile telephone companies against the refusal of applications for telephone masts.

Keith Hill: Planning Policy Guidance Note 8 Telecommunications (PPG8) already advises that all relevant matters will be considered as appropriate at all stages of the planning process.

Mobile Phone Masts

Bob Russell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what guidance has been given to the Planning Inspectorate to take into account health concerns as a reason for local authorities to refuse planning applications by mobile telephone companies for the erection of telephone masts; and if he will make a statement.

Keith Hill: The Courts have held that the Government's statements of planning policy are material considerations which must be taken into account, where relevant, in decisions on planning applications. These statements cannot make irrelevant any matter which is a material consideration in a particular case. Where such statements indicate the weight that should be given to relevant considerations, decision-makers must have proper regard to them.
	The guidance in Planning Policy Guidance Note 8 Telecommunications (PPG 8) says that health considerations and public concern can in principle be material considerations in determining applications for planning permission for telecommunications developments. Whether such matters are material in a particular case is ultimately a matter for the courts. In the first instance, it is for the decision-maker to determine what issues are material in any particular case and what weight to attach to them.
	Nevertheless, PPG8 states clearly that, in the Government's view, if a proposed mobile phone base station meets the international guidelines for public exposure (ICNIRP guidelines) it should not be necessary to give further consideration to the health aspects and any concerns about them, in processing an application for planning permission.

Parish Councils

David Taylor: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans he has to increase parish councils' powers under section 137 of the Local Government Act 1972.

Nick Raynsford: Section 118 of the Local Government Act provides for the maximum amount that a parish or town council can spend per elector under section 137 of the Local Government Act 1972 to be automatically uprated in line with the annual change in the retail prices index. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister intends that this power will come into effect in time for the next financial year.
	This is additional to the increase in the maximum amount, from £3.50 to £5.00 per elector per year, that took effect at the start of the current financial year.

Parliamentary Questions

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many Questions directed to him remain unanswered.

Yvette Cooper: At 10 October 2003 of the 2,743 House of Commons Parliamentary Questions tabled to the Deputy Prime Minister in this Parliamentary session, 42 Questions remain unanswered and of these 12 were tabled since 8 September.

Regeneration Schemes

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the regeneration schemes in (a) the last 10 and (b) the next three years, together with their (i) allocated amounts and (ii) actual amounts spent.

Yvette Cooper: Information on past regeneration schemes can be found in the Annual Reports of the former Department of the Environment; the former Department of the Environment Transport and the Regions; the former Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions; and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. Copies of these are available in the Libraries of the House.
	Information about regeneration programmes to be funded between 2003–04 and 2005–06 by the Office can be found in "Sustainable Communities: building for the future" published in February 2003. A copy of this is also available in the Libraries of the House.

US Ships (Dismantling)

Norman Baker: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the plans by Able UK to dismantle ships from the US Reserve Fleet and the relevant planning permission needs in respect of dry dock facilities.

Keith Hill: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister understands that Able UK has entered into a contract with the US Marine Administration to dismantle ships from the US Reserve Fleet. The decision on whether planning permission is needed for this operation, and for any associated development, and the determination of any planning applications, are, matters for Hartlepool Borough Council, in accordance with their local planning responsibilities.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Criminal Records

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how long on average it took to process an application for screening for criminal records of care home workers in (a) July 2002, (b) October 2002, (c) January 2003, (d) April 2003 and (e) July 2003.

Paul Goggins: Information is not available in the form requested. There are no IT procedures at present to extract this information from the Criminal Records Bureau database. It is expected that, as systems develop, this information will become available at some point in the future.
	However, average turnaround times for Standard and Enhanced Disclosures during the periods specified are shown in the table:
	
		Days
		
			  Standard Enhanced 
		
		
			 July 2002 16.71 21.04 
			 October 2002 16.75 32.00 
			 January 2003 26.00 47.72 
			 April 2003 12.27 23.18 
			 July 2003 19.25 25.91 
		
	
	The turnaround times for January are higher than usual because of lost production days between Christmas and New Year due to staff holidays, and a training and consolidation exercise of new PNC procedures.
	The Criminal Records Bureau has been steadily improving its performance and output since October 2002. The increase in July can be attributed to a surge in applications during the last two weeks in June in advance of an increase in fees coming into effect on 1 July. Approximately 50,000 additional applications were received above the Bureau's normal intake at that time of about 43,000 applications per week. While this increase in applications temporarily increased the turnaround times for applications, the Criminal Records Bureau nevertheless continued to meet its service standard targets.

Criminal Records

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  if he will exempt voluntary organisations from the recent increase in the level of charges to the Criminal Records Bureau for the remainder of financial year 2003–04 in respect of checks for paid staff;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the cost to voluntary organisations in financial year 2003–04 of the increase in the level of charges for checks by the Criminal Records Bureau in respect of paid staff.

Paul Goggins: We have no plans to exempt paid employees of voluntary organisations from paying the higher rates of fee which came into force on 1 July. Responsibility for paying the fee rests primarily with the individual applicant, although it is open to the employer to reimburse the charge. Charging a lower rate in some cases would mean adjusting the charge for others, who may be not better-placed to pay. Checks remain free to volunteers, saving the voluntary and community sector an estimated £10 million in the current financial year.
	I have placed in the Library a Regulatory Impact Assessment which assesses the impact of the fee increase across all sectors.

Criminal Records

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received about the changes to the disclosure levels regarding information which the Criminal Records Bureau will be required to provide to local authorities when they check on the suitability of persons to become Hackney carriage or private hire drivers; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Goggins: holding answer 11 September 2003
	At present, all applicants for licences as taxi and private hire vehicle drivers are eligible for a Standard Disclosure. Some—principally those whose duties regularly involve being in sole charge of unaccompanied children (for example, under a school contract) or vulnerable adults—are eligible for an Enhanced Disclosure. Earlier this year, as part of a wider consultation exercise about recommendations of the Independent Review Team appointed by my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary to look at the operation of the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB), we sought views on a proposition that the criteria for levels of Disclosure should be set by Ministers, in consultation with relevant stakeholders, on the basis of risk assessment and that it would then be the function of the CRB to ensure that the criteria were observed. An analysis of the responses received was placed in the Library on 5 June. We have since received a number of representations on this matter, instigated by the National Association of Taxi and Private Hire Licensing and Enforcement Officers. These argue that licensing authorities should determine the level of Disclosure required. This view will be taken into account in arriving at a conclusion on the matter.

Criminal Records

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Criminal Records Bureau will issue a disclosure for Kau Bellah, CRB reference 2270071.

Paul Goggins: A disclosure was issued for Kau Bellah on 24 September.

Criminal Records

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions he has had with colleagues from the Department of Health on the proposal of care home owners to seek a delay in the implementation of Criminal Records Bureau plans to require complete record checks prior to the employment of staff.

Paul Goggins: None. I am aware that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health has received a number of representations from representatives of the care home sector in the light of the National Care Standards Commission's decision to withdraw its interim guidance on Criminal Records Bureau checks for care home staff.
	The National Care Standards Commission, as the independent regulator, issued a press release on 22 September in order to make its position clear on this matter. It is available on the Commission's website at www.carestandards.org.uk.

Aylesbury Young Offenders Institution

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on his response to HM Chief Inspector of Prisons' report on Aylesbury YOI, published on 14 August.

Paul Goggins: The Prison Service produces an action plan for each inspection report based on the Chief Inspector's recommendations. Action plans list every recommendation and progress towards implementing each one. I see the original action plan and subsequent progress reports.
	The initial action plan for Aylesbury Young Offenders Institution should be ready by mid-October.

Child Abuse Investigations

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps have been taken to ensure that, when the police conduct a trawl in child abuse investigations, complainants are offered victim support services from an early stage of involvement in the investigation.

Paul Goggins: The Handbook for Senior Investigating Officers produced by the Association of Chief Police Officers and the Government's Inter-Agency Guidance both detail steps to be taken to ensure that victims of historical abuse are offered victim support services as an initial step. The Inter-Agency Guidance says that "an unequivocal victim support strategy and protocol should be established at the outset" of investigations, including consideration and support for victims both during and after an investigation.

Child Abuse Investigations

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if the Government will reform (a) the law of similar fact evidence, as recommended by the Home Affairs Committee, to require a striking similarity in historical child abuse cases and (b) the law of severance to introduce a presumption in favour of severance in cases where the similar allegations are inadmissible on a similar fact basis.

Paul Goggins: The Government set out its position on these issues in its response, published in April this year, to the Fourth Report of the Home Affairs Committee (Session 2001–02) "The Conduct of Investigations into Past Cases of Abuse in Children's Homes":
	"55. The Committee's recommendation [that the law of similar fact evidence is reformed to require a "striking similarity" in historical child abuse cases] would return the law on similar fact evidence (for these cases) to the position that applied following the case of Boardman in 1975. However, the test for admitting such evidence has developed since then to recognise that its value is not limited to cases of "striking similarity". For example, multiple accusations against an offender have a significance that derives from the unlikelihood that a person will be independently falsely accused of offences of a like nature, whether or not there is a particular degree of similarity. Whilst such accusations do not establish that an incident is true, and issues of collusion need to be considered carefully (as they would if the threshold were "strikingly similar"), such evidence is certainly relevant to assessing the cogency of a witness's account. Evidence of other incidents might also be relevant when considering an innocent explanation put forward by the defendant—what might credibly be explained as a mistake on one occasion becomes much less so in respect of repeated incidents. Here, too, the relevance of the other allegations does not depend on establishing a particular level of similarity between the events.
	56. The Government is therefore concerned that reverting to the "strikingly similar" test would risk denying juries and magistrates a range of potentially highly relevant evidence. Our approach, as embodied in our proposals for reforming the law on evidence of bad character in the Criminal Justice Bill currently before Parliament, is to enable juries and magistrates to hear the widest range of relevant evidence that will assist them to reach a fair verdict. The admissibility of bad character evidence should therefore depend on its relevance to the issues in the case, rather than on a particular degree of similarity.
	57. We are not, however, complacent that dangers cannot arise where evidence is admitted in these circumstances. However, there are safeguards to ensure that trials are fair. For example, in determining whether to admit the evidence, the courts must consider whether it would be more prejudicial than probative. The judge will therefore be able to direct that the charges be considered evidentially separate if necessary. And where this might not be sufficient to secure a fair trial, the judge can order that the various charges are tried separately, ensuring that the jury in each case is not aware of the evidence in the others. The Criminal Justice Bill also proposes that judges should be under a duty to withdraw a case from the jury where it becomes clear that seemingly independent allegations are in fact the result of collusion or other distortion and a conviction would be unsafe.
	58. The Committee also recommends a presumption in favour of ordering separate trials where allegations cannot be heard as evidence in support of each other on a similar fact basis. In their judgement in the case of Christou (1997), dealing with the severance of charges for sexual offences, the House of Lords held that a trial judge should exercise his discretion to sever to achieve a fair resolution of the issues. This is buttressed by the Human Rights Act 1998, which makes it clear that the courts must act in a way that is compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights including ensuring a fair trial. Given the centrality of fairness to the issue of severance, it is not clear what the proposed presumption would substantively add. The Committee is concerned that "sexual offences tend to engender greater prejudice than non-sexual offences" (paragraph 96). However, we do not agree that this warrants a special rule to deal with historic child abuse cases: the issue of prejudice will clearly be an important aspect of deciding whether severance is required and to the extent that there is a greater risk of prejudice in any particular case, whether of historic child abuse or any other, the argument in favour of severance will clearly be stronger."

Consultancies

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many consultancies were commissioned by his Department in the last two years for which figures are available; and what the cost of those contracts was.

Fiona Mactaggart: The available information held by the Home Office on the cost for the use of external consultants for the financial years 2000–01 and 2001–02 is given in the table.
	
		
			 Year Number of Consultancies Commissioned Cost of contracts (£) 
		
		
			 2000–01 Not known 27,877,286 
			 2001–02 145 21,147,058 
		
	
	We do not hold data on the number of consultancy contracts awarded for 2000–01 and to obtain this date would result in disproportionate cost. Information on cost or number of commissions for 2002–03 is not yet available.
	The increase in expenditure on consultancy in 2000–01 is primarily due to a major investment programme in the modernisation of the Home Office and in particular on IT related modernisation.

Criminal Justice Bill

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Government will adopt the recommendation by the Home Affairs Committee to amend the Criminal Justice Bill so that where the prosecution wish to interview a defence witness in advance of trial (a) they should be required to notify the defence and offer to interview the witness in the presence of the defence and (b) that interview would be tape-recorded.

Paul Goggins: A Government amendment to Part 5 of the Criminal Justice Bill was agreed by the House of Lords on 14 July 2003. This introduced a new clause requiring the Secretary of State to prepare a code of practice giving guidance to police officers in relation to the arranging a conduct of police interviews with defence witnesses. This provides that the code must include guidance on the notification and presence of the accused's solicitor at the interview. It is also the Government's intention that the code should include guidance on making an accurate recording of the interview either by writing or audio-recording where this is appropriate. Further details of the amendment may be found in the House of Lords, Official Report, 14 July 2003, columns 744–45W.

Criminal Justice Bill

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the Criminal Justice Bill's proposal to allow for greater admission at trial of a defendant's previous convictions.

Paul Goggins: The Criminal Justice Bill reforms the rules governing the admission of bad character evidence in criminal proceedings. The law already acknowledges that this sort of evidence has a proper role to play in appropriate circumstances. However, the rules governing its admission have developed in a piecemeal fashion and lack a rational and coherent structure. Our proposals will provide a new and comprehensive statutory scheme that puts the law on a clear and accessible footing.
	Evidence will be admissible where it is relevant to a case and provided that there isn't an adverse affect on the fairness of the proceedings. There will be a number of safeguards for defendants, including a power for judges to exclude evidence where its prejudicial effect would outweigh its probative value.
	The Bill also offers new protection to witnesses to ensure that questions relating to their previous conduct has a clear bearing on the issues in the trial.

Criminal Justice Bill

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the effects the proposal in the Criminal Justice Bill to allow for greater admission at trial of a defendant's previous convictions will have on criminal trials.

Paul Goggins: The Criminal Justice Bill reforms the rules governing the admission of bad character evidence in criminal proceedings. Our proposals will provide a new and comprehensive statutory scheme that puts the law on a clear and accessible footing.
	Evidence will be admissible where it is relevant to a case and provided that there is not an adverse affect on the fairness of the proceedings. There will be a number of safeguards for defendants, including a power for judges to exclude evidence where its prejudicial effect would outweigh its probative value.
	The Bill will encourage the admission of evidence of bad character in appropriate circumstances, ensuring that jurors and magistrates have available to them a full picture of the case. Rationalising and clarifying the rules will reduce the scope for legal arguments and make it more predictable for defendants when their record may be given in evidence.
	The new statutory scheme deals with witnesses as well as defendants, and offers new protection to ensure that questions about witnesses' previous conduct have a clear bearing on the issues in the trial. This will ensure a better balance between the rights of defendants and interests of witnesses.

Home Detention Curfew Orders

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners released on home detention curfew were unlawfully at large on the latest date for which figures are available, broken down by (a) category of offence, (b) contract region and (c) police force area; and what penalties have been imposed on each contractor as a result.

Paul Goggins: There were 296 prisoners unlawfully at large as at 30 June 2003 (out of 75,000 prisoners who had been released on Home Detention Curfew between January 1999 and 30 June 2003) and who subsequently had their licences revoked for breaching the conditions of the scheme. The following table gives a breakdown of these prisoners according to their index offence. The Prison Service does not record centrally the contract region or police area for each of these prisoners and to provide such information would be at disproportionate cost. However, amendments to data collection systems will be made so that such information can be stored in the future.
	Once a prisoner has been reported unlawfully at large, it is the responsibility of the police and not the electronic monitoring contractor to apprehend that person. Therefore there is no financial penalty imposed upon the contractor in respect of these prisoners.

Drug Rape

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what campaigns his Department is funding directed at warning people of the danger of drug rape; and what plans he has to do so in the future.

Caroline Flint: When the drug Gammahydroxybutyrate (GHB), commonly used in drug rape, was outlawed by the Government in July 2003, we ensured that this was accompanied by high media coverage.
	In addition, the Eastern Government Office Drug Team recently supported production of a new drug rape awareness video called Spiked! The Production of the video was funded through Drugscope's Millennium Awards scheme. The video was launched at the end of September and will be shown in public and university cinemas until November in Eastern Region cinema during screenings of newly released films. These showings are supported by the Regional Screen Agency for the East of England. The stylish but hard-hitting infomercial aims to increase awareness of the dangers of drug rape and make people aware of how they can protect themselves.
	Finally the Government's new drug awareness campaign, FRANK also supplies information about date rape. The FRANK website www.talktofrank.com pays particular attention to GHB. It warns the reader that GHB has been linked to rape cases. It states '. . . because it's almost tasteless it's easily slipped in a drink'.

Food Expenditure

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much was spent on food by his Department and by each of the agencies for which it is responsible in (a) 2001–02 and (b) 2002–03; what proportion of that food by value was produced in the United Kingdom; what guidance he has issued to encourage the procurement of home-produced food; and if he will make a statement.

Fiona Mactaggart: The Home Office (with the exception of the Prison Service) is not a direct purchaser of food as this is provided through Facilities Management Contracts. Food purchased directly relates to official hospitality and where applicable we pay a subsidy to the Facility Management contractors for the provision of food in staff restaurants. By subsidising the costs of meals in the staff restaurants we are able to reduce the daily costs of staff working in central London which aids staff retention and provides them with a variety of nutritional snacks and hot meals.
	Due to the disproportionate costs I am unable to provide you with all the details requested. I have though highlighted the subsidies that apply to the central London Headquarters and Croydon estates.
	
		
			  Central London HQ Croydon Estate 
		
		
			 Expenditure on canteen subsidy 2001–02 (£) 218,000 99,716 (January-December 2001) 
			 Percentage of food products produced in the UK Not known Not known 
			 Expenditure on canteen subsidy 2002–03 (£) 179,000 79,098 (January-December 2002) 
			 Percentage of food products produced in the UK 62 Not known 
		
	
	The Prison Service recorded expenditure on food was £40,155,638 in 2001–02 and £42,357,666 in 2002–03. No data is held on the value of food produced in the United Kingdom for 2001–02. In 2002–03, £31,104,289 (73 per cent.) was produced in the United Kingdom.
	The Home Office and Prison Service are both working with Department for the Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs (Defra) on the Sustainable Food Procurement Initiative which is part of the Government's strategy for Sustainable Farming and Food. This is intended to encourage the public sector to procure food in a manner that promotes Sustainable development and does not discriminate against local and UK suppliers. As part of this the Home Office and Prison Service have developed separate action plans that will be used to measure progress towards meeting the initiatives objectives.

Timber

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the inquiry into the use of Indonesian rainforest timber at 2 Marsham Street will be completed; and if he will place a copy of the report in the Library.

Fiona Mactaggart: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Stoke-on-Trent, North (Ms Walley) on 1 September 2003, Official Report, column 985W. The report was prepared for internal use. An edited version is being placed in the Library which omits text covered by the exemptions in Part 2 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information. The recommendations have been and are being implemented. Arrangements for monitoring construction timber purchased by the developer for their own use have now been put in place. This is in addition to the previously planned arrangements for monitoring timber that will be part of the new building. Despite extensive inquiries the developer has been unable to establish precisely the source of the timber used to manufacture plywood previously supplied to the site.

Juvenile Prisoners (Strip Searches)

Rudi Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  whether the guidelines for strip searching juvenile prisoners are the same as for strip searching children in (a) local authority secure children's homes and (b) secure training centres;
	(2)  whether the guidelines for strip searching juvenile prisoners are the same as for adult prisoners;
	(3)  whether force may be used to strip search a juvenile prisoner.

Paul Goggins: The Prison Service Security Manual gives instruction to all prisons on how to strip search prisoners in line with Prison Rule 41 and Young Offender Institution Rule 43. The frequency with which this is carried out is generally decided by the prison governor and the area manager, except for certain activities where there is mandatory routine strip searching, such as reception.
	There is no equivalent central guidance issued by local authority secure children's homes. Each home operates its own policy according to their security needs. Some homes do not strip search any young persons in their care, while others may strip search all new arrivals. Strip searching may also be carried out where there is suspicion that illicit items are being concealed, sometimes with the assistance of the police. The methods used to perform a strip search are also decided by each centre without central guidance.
	The Secure Training Centre (STC) Rules 1998 and the Operational Procedures of the companies that run the three STCs provide guidance that must be followed by staff involved in strip searching. These techniques are similar to those used by the Prison Service.
	The current Prison Service Policy on strip searching in the Security Manual (Prison Service Order 1000) applies to all categories and types of prisoner. This includes instructions on techniques and frequency of strip searching.
	The Prison Service recognises the sensitivities around the strip searching of young prisoners, and separate guidance has recently been issued to Governors of prisons holding juvenile prisoners emphasising the need for staff to be aware of specific child protection issues.
	Training modules for new entrant officers also include specific advice for staff involved in conducting strip searches of young prisoners. Officers conducting strip searches are expected to be aware of the ways in which searches, and the way they are conducted, may affect young people.
	Young Offender Rules and the Prison Service Security Manual allow force to be used where a young person refuses to comply with a lawful order to submit to a strip search. No more force than is necessary will be used and it will be used only as a last resort.

Community Policing

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police forces operate a system of named local police officers.

Hazel Blears: The Home Office does not have information centrally on those police forces that operate a system of named local police officers. Community policing is emphasised to different degrees by different police forces.
	Citizen focused policing prioritises the need to access, understand and engage with communities by ensuring that the citizen perspective is embedded within their decision making, policies, practices and service delivery, in order to improve police effectiveness. We want to see all police forces putting more effort into actively engaging with their local communities. The Community beat officer is a vital link between the police service as a whole and the local community.

Probation Services

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether there will be a shortfall in the (a) National Probation Service and (b) National Probation Directorate budget for 2003–04.

Paul Goggins: The 2003–04 settlement added £70 million to the probation budget. An overspend on this budget is projected but this is not unusual at this time of the financial cycle and by the end of the year it is anticipated that the budget will be in balance.

Terrorism Act

Neil Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many stops and searches have been carried out during 2003 by each police force in the UK under section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000.

David Blunkett: Figures on stops and searches under Section 44(1) and Section 44(2) of the Terrorism Act 2000 are published annually in the Home Office Statistical Bulletin. The latest published figures are for the financial year 2001–02. These are set out in the table. Figures for 2002–03 are due to be published in November this year. Figures for 2003–04 will be published when the relevant data has been collated and verified.
	
		Table P3 Searches of vehicles and occupants under section 44(1) and searches of pedestrians under section 44(2) of the Terrorism Act 2000(5) and resultant arrests, by police force area -- England and Wales 2001–02Number
		
			  Stops and searches ofvehicles and occupantsunder 44(1) Stops and searches ofpedestrians under44(2) 
			 Police force area Searches Resultant arrests Searches Resultant arrests 
		
		
			 Avon and Somerset — — — — 
			 Bedfordshire 8 — — — 
			 Cambridgeshire — — — — 
			 Cheshire 385 4 2 — 
			 Cleveland — — — — 
			 Cumbria — — — — 
			 Derbyshire 20 — — — 
			 Devon and Cornwall 129 — — — 
			 Dorset — — — — 
			 Durham 235 — 3 — 
			 Essex — — — — 
			 Gloucestershire 36 — — — 
			 Greater Manchester 36 1 — — 
			 Hampshire 0 — — — 
			 Hertfordshire 4 — — — 
			 Humberside — — — — 
			 Kent 55 — — — 
			 Lancashire — — — — 
			 Leicestershire 8 — 8 — 
			 Lincolnshire — — — — 
			 London, City of 3,409 92 86 8 
			 Merseyside — — — — 
			 Metropolitan police 3,598 63 473 11 
			 Norfolk 2 — — — 
			 Northamptonshire — — — — 
			 Northumbria — — — — 
			 North Yorkshire 8 — — — 
			 Nottinghamshire — — — — 
			 South Yorkshire 263 — — — 
			 Staffordshire — — — — 
			 Suffolk — — — — 
			 Surrey 1 1 1 — 
			 Sussex 767 1 310 T 
			 Thames Valley — — — — 
			 Warwickshire — — — — 
			 West Mercia 5 — — — 
			 West Midlands — — — — 
			 West Yorkshire — — — — 
			 Wiltshire — — — — 
			 Dyfed Powys — — — — 
			 Gwent — — — — 
			 North Wales — — — — 
			 South Wales — — — — 
			 Total 9,239 169 947 20 
		
	
	(5) Formerly section 13A and 13B of the Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act 1989 and repealed under the Terrorism Act 2000 which came into force on 19 February 2001.

Terrorism Act

Neil Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of those stopped and searched during the current year under section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000 have been (a) arrested, (b) charged with an offence and (c) charged with a terrorism offence.

David Blunkett: The data collected on stops and searches made under Section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000 is not automatically cross-referenced by the forces with the data they hold on arrests or on those charged. This information could therefore be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

British-Irish Council

Iris Robinson: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many times the British-Irish Council has met since April 1998.

Christopher Leslie: The British-Irish Council has met on the following occasions since its inception in December 1999:
	Summit Level
	17 December 1999;
	30 November 2001;
	14 June 2002; and
	22 November 2002.
	Sectoral formats
	2 October 2000—BIC Environment Ministers;
	19 December 2000—BIC Transport Ministers;
	25 February 2002—BIC Environment Ministers;
	22 March 2002—BIC Drugs Ministers;
	16 January 2003—BIC Environment Ministers; and
	7 February 2003—BIC Drug Ministers.
	The next British-Irish Summit is due to take place in November 2003, and a meeting of BIC Environment Ministers is due later this month. There have also been many official-level meetings and associated events, including seminars and conferences.

Good Friday Agreement

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what measures have been taken in the last 12 months to promote co-operation in matters concerning work and pensions through the east-west dimension of the Good Friday Agreement.

Christopher Leslie: Strand Three of the Belfast or Good Friday Agreement did not identify work and pensions as one of a number of possible issues for early discussion within the British-Irish Council. The Council is currently working on a number of other priority areas.

Post-mortem Retentions

Iris Robinson: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs whether the Government plans to restrict coroners' post mortem retentions only to material that is required for evidentiary purposes of a legal nature.

David Lammy: The post-mortem examination in Northern Ireland is a key stage in the investigation of deaths referred to a coroner, as the findings identify the medical cause of death and often determine whether or not any further action on the part of the coroner is required. There are two main purposes for which it is necessary to retain organs or tissue samples, i.e. to enable the pathologist accurately to determine the cause of death or for evidential purposes in suspected criminal cases. It will therefore continue to be necessary to retain organs or tissue samples for both these reasons.

Appeals(Terrorism/Immigration and Nationality Acts)

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what steps he is taking to expedite appeals against (a) detention under the Terrorism Act 2000 and (b) removal of nationality under the Asylum and Nationality Act 1998; how many appeals (i) have been decided and (ii) remain to be decided in each case; and in relation to (ii) what the (A) longest period since the appeal was lodged and (B) the average period since the appeal was lodged was; and when he expects outstanding appeals to be heard.

David Lammy: The preparation and listing of appeals takes place under the direction of the Chairman of the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC), who is an independent member of the judiciary. It is always the intention for appeals to be heard as soon as they can be readied for hearing.
	No appeals concerning detention under the Anti-terrorism Crime and Security Act 2001 have been decided by SIAC, although two appeals have been abandoned. No appeals concerning deprivation of citizenship status under the British Nationality Act 1981 as amended by the Nationality Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 have been decided.
	18 appeals concerning detention remain to be decided, including 10 appeals where the hearing has taken place and the judgments are pending. One appeal concerning deprivation of citizenship remains to be decided.
	The first six appeals concerning detention were lodged in January 2002 and remain to be decided. The 18 appeals concerning detention still outstanding were lodged an average of 14 months ago. The one appeal concerning deprivation of citizenship has been outstanding for six months.
	The current schedule of appeals listed for hearing is as follows:
	
		
			 Month Detained Citizenship 
		
		
			 November/December 2003 2 — 
			 January/March 2004 2 — 
			 April 2004 — 1 
			 Later 4 — 
			 Total 8 1

Call Centres

Michael Connarty: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs whether his Department plans to outsource call centre work to premises outside the United Kingdom.

David Lammy: No.

Law of Limitation (Child Sexual Abuse)

Oona King: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs if he will introduce legislation to implement the recommendations by the Law Commission on revision of the law of limitation in relation to claims for child sexual abuse.

David Lammy: In July 2002, the Government announced their acceptance in principle of the recommendations for reform of the 1980 Act contained in the Law Commission report, "Limitation of Actions", subject to further consideration of certain aspects. This further consideration will include the recommendations relating to claims for child sexual abuse. Legislation will be introduced to implement those recommendations which are accepted when an opportunity arises.

Magistrates Courts (North Yorkshire)

John Grogan: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs when the outstanding decision on the appeal of North Yorkshire County Council against the closure of three magistrates' courts in North Yorkshire will be announced.

Christopher Leslie: Having received representations from North Yorkshire County Council and the North Yorkshire Magistrates' Courts Committee, I have decided that the County Council's appeal should be dismissed and the Magistrates' Courts Committee's decision to close the Courts at Richmond, Picketing and Whitby should be upheld. However, I understand that the Magistrates' Courts Committee have indicated their intention that these courthouses should not close until the courthouses to which the work will be transferred haven been replaced or refurbished.

Magistrates Courts (Private Finance Initiative)

John Grogan: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs when the decision on the application from the North Yorkshire Magistrates' Courts committee for private finance initiative funding for building new magistrates' courts in York and Selby will be announced.

Christopher Leslie: Further work is being undertaken on the business case and the Court Service and the Magistrates' Court Service are jointly reviewing their strategy for court provision in the area. This means that the earliest an announcement could be made is in spring 2004.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Anticoagulants

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many coagulometers were provided through the health service in Northern Ireland for patients to monitor international normalised ratio levels at home, in the last year for which figures are available.

Angela Smith: The Health and Personal Social Services in Northern Ireland does not provide coagulometers for home use. However, Roche Ltd. made a small number of coagulometers available and these were provided to patients for home use on a trial basis.

Anticoagulants

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate he has made of the cost of monitoring international normalised ratio levels of patients in Northern Ireland on warfarin in the last year for which figures are available.

Angela Smith: Information in the form requested is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Anticoagulants

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what plans he has to make coagulometers more widely available in Northern Ireland for home monitoring of international normalised ratios by patients on warfarin.

Angela Smith: There are no plans at present to make coagulometers available for home use on the HPSS.

Child Protection Training

Eddie McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 
	(1)  how many teachers and schools within each education and library board participated in multi-disciplinary training for child protection (a) from 1 April 1993 to 31 March 2003 and (b) from 1 April 2003 to 31 August 2003;
	(2)  how many teachers and schools within each education and library board are participating in multi-disciplinary teaching for child protection.

Jane Kennedy: Training for teachers in child protection is not multi-disciplinary. It is provided by the Education and Library Boards and is focused on the particular needs of teachers and schools. Multi-disciplinary training has been offered by the Health and Social Services Trusts but information is not available on which teachers may have attended this.

Commercial Rates

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many premises in Northern Ireland were charged a commercial rate for 2002–03.

Ian Pearson: I have asked the Chief Executive of the Rates Collection Agency to write to the hon. Lady in response to this question. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Concessionary Fares

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what his policy is on the acceptance by Translink of concessionary public transport passes issued outside Northern Ireland.

John Spellar: The Northern Ireland Concessionary Fares Scheme provides concessionary travel only for eligible Northern Ireland residents on scheduled public transport services within Northern Ireland. Consequently, Translink does not accept concessionary public transport passes issued outside Northern Ireland. We have no plans to extend the Concessionary Fares Scheme to include people who are not resident in Northern Ireland.

Delayed Discharges

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much money was spent by each health board in Northern Ireland to counter delayed discharges in each of the last three years.

Angela Smith: Information in the form requested is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Delayed Discharges

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many hospital in-patients in Northern Ireland had their discharge delayed while awaiting community care packages on 1 January (a) 2000, (b) 2001, (c) 2002 and (d) 2003.

Angela Smith: Information on delayed discharges is collected in respect of the position at the last day of each month. The numbers of acute hospital in-patients who had their discharge delayed while awaiting community care packages were 265 at 31 December 2000, 341 at 31 December 2001, and 323 at 31 December 2002. Equivalent information is not available for the position at 31 December 1999, but at February 2000 there were 319 in-patients whose discharge was delayed.

Drug Treatment

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the age was of the youngest person in Northern Ireland treated in the last five years with an (a) anti-depressant, (b) anti-psychotic and (c) amphetamine drug.

Angela Smith: The information requested is not available.

Equality Commission

Eddie McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many press releases the Equality Commission has released in 2003; and of these how many were wholly or mainly on the issue of fair employment.

John Spellar: I have asked the Chief Executive of the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland to write to the hon. Gentleman. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

Exotic Pets

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what plans there are to require the owners of exotic pets in Northern Ireland to register them.

Angela Smith: On 13 October I published the legislative proposals for public consultation to regulate dangerous wild animals kept by private individuals in Northern Ireland. The proposed legislation will require anyone owning or wishing to own a dangerous wild animal to apply to the Department of the Environment for a licence. It will also establish stringent criteria, on matters such as public safety, security of accommodation and animal welfare, which will need to be met, and confirmed by inspection, before the grant of a licence. The draft legislation also specifies licence conditions which the licence holder will have to meet while any dangerous wild animal is being kept. The consultation paper has been circulated and the Department of the Environment would welcome any views on the legislative proposals.

Fuel Poverty

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many fuel poor households based on the 2001 Northern Ireland House Conditions Survey there are in each local authority area; and what his estimate is of how many children are living in fuel poor households.

John Spellar: The number of fuel poor households identified in the 2001 House Condition Survey in each local authority area is following table:
	
		
			 Local Authority Area Number 
		
		
			 Antrim 6,799 
			 Ards 7,912 
			 Armagh 5,065 
			 Ballymena 8,155 
			 Ballymoney 4,070 
			 Banbridge 4,676 
			 Belfast 42,962 
			 Carrickfergus 3,396 
			 Castlereagh 5,654 
			 Coleraine 6,520 
			 Cookstown 3,606 
			 Craigavon 13,449 
			 Down 6,037 
			 Dungannon 3,671 
			 Fermanagh 6,462 
			 Larne 4,396 
			 Limavady 4,019 
			 Lisburn 10,569 
			 Londonderry 13,086 
			 Magherafelt 5,690 
			 Moyle 2,170 
			 Newry & Mourne 6,651 
			 Newtownabbey 10,038 
			 North Down 7,656 
			 Omagh 5,101 
			 Strabane 5,449 
		
	
	The 2001 house condition survey estimated that there are some 114,000 children living in fuel poor households.

General Practice

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many general practitioners practices in Northern Ireland are not accepting any new patients on to their lists.

Angela Smith: The information requested is not available.

Health Service IT

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what comparative studies have been conducted on the cost of improving health service information technology in Northern Ireland and schemes in the rest of the United Kingdom; and if he will make a statement.

Angela Smith: To date no formal comparative studies have been conducted on the cost of improving health service information technology in Northern Ireland and schemes in the rest of the United Kingdom. My Department published earlier this year a new ICT Strategy for the HPSS, which will set the overall direction of investment for modernising ICT services over the next 10 years. This strategy will be taken forward in a cost-effective way and will make use of developments, products and services sourced as far as possible from the same supplies who supply systems to the NHS.

Health Service IT

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on standards in NHS information technology; and what costs have been incurred from the recent modernisation of the technology.

Angela Smith: Northern Ireland works closely with the other UK administrations in the development of standards for use in ICT in healthcare and my Department is fully committed to adopting any UK-wide standards for use in the HPSS.
	In addition to using UK standards, within the HPSS the policy has historically been to use common IT solutions for common problems. This has led to the use of standard IT systems throughout the HPSS, for example in patient administration, clinical support services, finance and administration.
	Since 1 April 2002, costs incurred in Nl-wide ICT modernization projects have been:
	i. £4.2 million for the implementation of a unique patient and client identifier for use within health and social care throughout Northern Ireland together with the provision of a highly secure 'always on' communications network and E-Mail and Internet services to all GPs (contract let July 2003).
	ii. £4.3 million for the consolidation of 104 obsolescent computers in the HPSS into two highly resilient, mutually supportive computer systems to serve the whole HPSS (Contract let December 2002).
	Both of these contracts were let by open competition under EC/GATT rules. £1.2 million has also been made available to HPSS bodies specifically to further encourage and facilitate the use of IT by health and social care clinical and professional staff, mainly through the provision of additional PCs and data communications equipment.

Organ/Tissue Retention

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what payment has been made for organs and tissue removed and retained without informed consent in Northern Ireland in the last five years.

Angela Smith: No payment has been made for organs and tissue removed and retained without informed consent in Northern Ireland in the last five years.

IRA Weapons Stocks

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate he has made of the amounts of (a) weapons and (b) explosives possessed by the Irish Republican Army (i) now, and (ii) in April 1998; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Kennedy: Estimates of the amount of weaponry held by paramilitary organisations are an intelligence matter on which it would be inappropriate to comment. The Government has consistently made clear that paramilitary groups must end all forms of terrorist activity and decommissioning should be carried out through the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning appointed by the Government for this purpose.

Manufacturing Exports

Roy Beggs: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate he has made of export sales growth in Northern Ireland's manufacturing companies in each of the next three years.

Ian Pearson: There are no forecasts of Northern Ireland manufacturing export sales. However, between 1996–97 and 2001–02, manufacturing export sales increased by 45 per cent. in real terms. The Invest NI Corporate Plan and "Building on Progress—Priorities and Plans 2003–06" includes a target for the growth of export sales. The current target is for manufacturing export sales to increase by 10 per cent. each year in real terms between April 2002 and March 2005.
	I am confident that a sustained global economic recovery will lead to an improvement in Northern Ireland's manufacturing performance. In that context, these challenging targets remain firm.

Northern Ireland Mother andBaby Association

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what public funding has been received in the last year by the Northern Ireland Mother and Baby Association (NIMBA).

Angela Smith: A total of £41,000 from public funds was provided to NIMBA to support its activities, in the last financial year.

Planning (Ravenblack)

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when a decision will be made on the planning application submitted by Ravenblack in November 2000 for a development in the Gocean area of Killyleagh; and if he will make a statement.

Angela Smith: In August 2003, I met with locally elected representatives and facilitated a further meeting with representatives at their request to discuss this proposal. I agreed that further consideration would be given to some of the issues raised, and further consultation was subsequently carried out with key organisations. Some of these responses are still outstanding. Once received and considered, the application will be processed to determination as expeditiously as possible.

Police Leisure Facilities

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many applications have been received by the PSNI since 1 January from (a) former and (b) retired police officers for permission to use police leisure facilities; how many of those applications have been processed; and how many applicants have been informed that permission has been granted.

Jane Kennedy: The Chief Constable has advised me that to date 54 retired and former officers have applied for permission to use police leisure facilities. Some 33 applications have been processed and approved with the remainder being considered by PSNI Security Branch. No retired officers have been refused permission to use police leisure facilities and it remains the Chief Constable's policy to encourage retired officers to avail of the health and fitness facilities available.

Prison Budgets

Eddie McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what budget was allocated to each prison in Northern Ireland between 1 April and 31 August.

Jane Kennedy: The Northern Ireland Prison Service receives an annual budget allocation from the Northern Ireland Office through the spending review process. The 2003–04 allocation to the Service is as follows:
	
		
			  £000 
		
		
			 Operating costs 116,895 
			 Capital costs 12,195 
		
	
	The Director General has delegated authority to manage the Service's allocation in an effective, efficient and economic manner. The Service is managed as a whole. Budget allocations are made to budget holders throughout the Service and not on an establishment by establishment basis.

Queen's University

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many members there are of the Senate of Queen's University; and how many of them completed undergraduate degrees at the University.

Jane Kennedy: There are 32 members of the Senate of Queen's University and 16 of those have completed undergraduate degrees at the University.

Road Deaths

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people were killed on the roads in Northern Ireland in (a) 1973, (b) 1983 and (c) 1993.

Jane Kennedy: The information is set out in the following table.
	
		
			 Year Fatalities 
		
		
			 1973 335 
			 1983 173 
			 1993 143

Security Measures (Health Service)

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much each health trust in Northern Ireland spent on security measures in the last 12 months.

Angela Smith: Information in the form requested is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Sports Funding

David Burnside: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what funding from Her Majesty's Government has been received by (a) the Gaelic Athletic Association, (b) the Irish Football Association and (c) the Irish Rugby Football Union, Ulster Branch, in each year since 1998.

Angela Smith: The Sports Council for Northern Ireland is responsible for the development of Sport in Northern Ireland including the distribution of Government Exchequer funding to governing bodies of Sport including the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), the Irish Football Association (IFA) and the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU), Ulster Branch. The following table provides information detailing the Exchequer funding distributed by the Sports Council NI in each year from 1998–99 to 2002–03 to the GAA, IFA and Ulster Branch of the IRFU:
	
		
			  1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 Total 
		
		
			 GAA 30,000 30,000 30,000 30,000 45,000 165,000 
			 IFA 50,000 50,000 50,000 59,000 52,500 261,500 
			 IRFU, Ulster Branch 16,000 16,000 16,000 16,000 45,000 109,000

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

University Applications

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on levels of applications to universities in the last three years from (a) international students, (b) UK students and (c) students from the West Midlands.

Alan Johnson: holding answer 14 October 2003
	The latest available information from the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) covers applicants to full-time and sandwich undergraduate courses in the UK and is shown in the table. Comparable data for 2003 entry will not be published until January 2004, but the latest data for 2003 shows that, by early October, overall applicants were up by 3 per cent. This continued increase demonstrates that students realise that higher education can bring them better opportunities and are willing to make the investment.
	
		Applicants via UCAS by home domicile
		
			  Year of entry 
			 Applicant domicile 2000 2001 2002 
		
		
			 Overseas(6) 52,937 54,188 59,511 
			 UK 389,091 399,645 401,854 
			 West Midlands 32,717 34,459 33,999 
		
	
	(6) Includes EU and non-EU students

Dyslexia

Jonathan R Shaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on the delivery of the Raising the Achievement of Dyslexia Pupils: Dyslexia Teaching project that was funded in 2002–03.

Margaret Hodge: The Raising the Achievement of Dyslexia Pupils: Dyslexia Friendly Teaching project was one of 16 projects in receipt of grant under the Department's Special Educational Needs (SEN) Training and Development Fund 2002–03. The fund was established to provide one-off pump priming support to aid the creation of new, or extended, in-service training and development opportunities for teachers and other staff, both in mainstream and special schools. The aim was to help improve and reinforce skills in the area of SEN and disabilities.
	This particular project is being delivered by the Institute of Education at Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU), working in collaboration with the British Dyslexia Association. It involves a validated module, targeted at new or recently qualified teachers and learning support assistants, and includes the creation of course materials and video case studies of successful practice in schools and classes. This material has now been completed and is in the process of being edited and transferred to a DVD format for the classroom and a CD-ROM covering the teaching methods and philosophies of the teachers involved. It is proposed that the material will be available via the MMU website.

Additional School Funding (Armed Forces)

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what recent progress has been made towards providing additional funding for schools with a high percentage of pupils drawn from families serving in Her Majesty's armed forces.

David Miliband: Additional funding for such schools would need to come through the budget shares calculated in accordance with the local education authority's school funding formula. Any school concerned with this issue should press for change through local consultative procedures. The Department will be considering the overall needs of such schools through a working group being set up this autumn.

Pregnant Asylum Seekers

Andrew Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what research has been conducted on assistance the Government might provide to pregnant asylum seekers who have been raped as a consequence of war; and if he will make a statement on support services for teenage asylum seekers who are victims of rape.

Margaret Hodge: On 16 July 2003 my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education pledged to commission research into the support networks of pregnant teenage asylum seekers, Official Report, column 95WH. Information gained from upcoming national events, organised by the Government's Teenage Pregnancy Unit, will identify areas that require further research, which can be addressed in the near future.
	In relation to support services, adult and child pregnant asylum seekers who have been raped as a consequence of war have the same rights of access to the national health service and its specialist services as their peers.
	The Government is currently considering how to improve the provision of interpreting services in the UK in addition to providing language support services for NHS Direct. This work is due to be completed by the end of 2003 and a contract for services will be in place by early 2004.

Child Care

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans he has to make child care more affordable.

Margaret Hodge: The Government recognises that making child care affordable is a key challenge for the National Childcare Strategy and has made a substantial investment to achieve this. We have funded a substantial expansion in child care provision in the public, private and voluntary sectors, with a wide variety of types of child care—nurseries, child minders, before and after school provision and increasingly delivered alongside early education and other family services—to ensure diversity and choice for parents and to provide better services for children.
	Working parents, subject to the level of their income, may receive support through the child care element of the Working Tax Credit (WTC). Tax credits are rightly targeted at lower and middle income families who may use a range of registered or approved child care. The child care element of the Working Tax Credit provides for up to 70 per cent. of costs of eligible child care. It can pay up to £94.50 a week for one child (where the childcare cost is £135), and up to £140 a week for two or more children (where the cost is £200).
	No Government has provided the kind of direct support for the costs of child care that is delivered by the child care element of the Working Tax Credit. Over £650 million a year is now spent on supporting parents with child care costs.
	Families are further supported through early education places, which can be used to off-set the cost of child care. As a result of our policies, all four year olds are able to access a free, good quality, part-time early education place. From April 2004, six months ahead of the original target, this will be extended to all three year olds. Currently 88 per cent. of three year olds are able to benefit from some level of free provision.
	Support is also available through various grants and access funds for parents studying further and higher education, for participants on the New Deals and those receiving Job Seekers' allowance.

Child Care

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans he has to increase the number of childcare places in Redcar.

Margaret Hodge: The local authority area of Redcar and Cleveland is planning to create an additional 360 childcare places in 2003–04 bringing their total stock of childcare places to approximately 3100 by April 2004. This will represent some 13 places for every 100 children aged 0–14 in the area compared with an estimated national average by 2004 of 15 places for every 100 children.
	To help meet the national target for a further 250,000 new childcare places by March 2006 Redcar and Cleveland have been allocated a target to create 598 new childcare places in 2004–06. The local authority has written to confirm acceptance of this target and the funds being made available to support this growth.

Child Care

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on the level of provision of workplace childcare in Redcar.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 16 October 2003
	I understand that there are currently no workplace nurseries in Redcar.
	The Government provides tax and National Insurance exemptions to encourage employers to provide workplace nurseries.
	We are currently reviewing the tax and National Insurance treatment of employer-supported childcare. Our proposals offer improvements to give a better incentive to employers to support a wider range of good quality childcare provision and will benefit a greater number of employees, especially those working for smaller employers who do not have workplace nurseries.

Children and Young People's Unit

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to his answer of 6 October, Official Report, columns 1127–28W, on the Children and Young People's Unit, what activities have been undertaken by the Unit in co-ordinating the UK's participation in (a) the EU Open Method of Co-ordination on Youth Policy and (b) the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Margaret Hodge: The Children and Young People's Unit co-ordinates UK participation in the EU Open Method of Co-ordination on Youth Policy (Youth OMC) and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) through a variety of methods.
	Co-ordination with the Devolved Administrations
	The Unit chairs a Devolved Administrations Liaison Group (DALG) which meets for half a day, four times a year. Membership is comprised of officials with responsibility for EU youth policy and child rights policy from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Youth OMC and the UNCRC are standing agenda items.
	The Unit holds two half-day bilateral meetings per year with officials in each of the Devolved Administrations. Again, the Youth OMC and the UNCRC are standing agenda items.
	The Unit has an information sharing arrangement with the Devolved Administrations where written information is circulated quarterly by e-mail to officials updating them on developments and new initiatives for children and young people in each country of the UK.
	These formal arrangements are reinforced with regular working-level contact between the Unit and each of the Devolved Administrations.
	Co-Ordination with Westminster Departments
	At a formal level, co-ordination on both the Youth OMC and the UNCRC has previously been undertaken through the Children and Young People's Unit Interdepartmental Steering Group. With the recent machinery of government changes following the creation of a Children and Families Directorate within the Department for Education and Skills, structures for cross-Whitehall co-ordination are currently being reviewed. Formal co-ordination of the Youth OMC and the UNCRC will become part of the new arrangements.
	At working-level, the Unit has daily contact with officials across Whitehall on these two issues.

Examinations

David Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will list for each local education authority (a) the floor target with respect to the percentage of year 11 pupils attending maintained schools gaining five or more GCSE results at Grades A* to C and (b) the date by which the floor target has to be achieved; whether the GCSE results of pupils attending academies will be included in calculating each local education authority's performance; and which local education authorities did not achieve the floor target in 2003.

David Miliband: holding answer 16 October 2003
	The information regarding floor targets is as follows:
	The floor target is that 38 per cent. of 16-year-old pupils in schools in each LEA are to achieve five or more grades A*-C at GCSE/GNVQ by 2004. The GCSE/GNVQ results of pupils attending Academies will be taken into account in calculating each Local Education Authority's performance.
	Based on 2003 provisional figures, the following Local Education Authorities have not yet achieved the 2004 floor target yet: Bristol City (35.0 per cent.), Greenwich (34.5 per cent.), Hackney (36.8 per cent.), Haringey (37.5 per cent.), Islington (36.9 per cent.), Kingston-upon-Hull (31.6 per cent.), Knowsley (33.2 per cent.), North East Lincolnshire (35.0 per cent.), Nottingham City (34.3 per cent.), Salford (36.2 per cent.), Sandwell (35.3 per cent.) and Southwark (37.7 per cent.).

Examinations

Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what recent discussions his Department has had with (a) the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority and (b) the exam boards on control procedures for (i) GCSE and (ii) A level exams.

David Miliband: The control procedures for public examinations are detailed in the GCSE, GCE, VCE, GNVQ and AEA Code of Practice which was jointly drawn up by the Regulatory Authorities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) as Regulator, is responsible for ensuring the three unitary awarding bodies in England fulfil their obligations under the Code of Practice and conduct regular reviews to ensure parity.
	Following a recommendation from Mike Tomlinson's Inquiry into A Level standards last year, QCA strengthened the Code of Practice for the 2003 examinations, paying particular attention to the section governing the setting of grade boundaries.

Good Friday Agreement

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what measures have been taken in the last 12 months to promote co-operation in matters concerning education and skills through the east-west dimension of the Good Friday Agreement.

David Lammy: I have been asked to reply.
	Strand Three of the Belfast or Good Friday Agreement identified education as one of a number of possible issues for discussion within the British-Irish Council. The Council is currently working on a number of other priority areas, although some of them touch on education and skills issues.

Graduate Teacher Scheme

Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what estimate he has made of (a) the number and (b) the percentage of newly qualified teachers trained under the graduate teacher scheme this year who have been unable to find employment in teaching.

David Miliband: My right hon. Friend has made no such estimates.

Electronics/Electrical Engineering

Colin Challen: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what have been the student participation rates in (a) electronic, (b) electrical and (c) combined electronic/electrical engineering courses in the last five years.

Alan Johnson: The latest available information is in the table.
	
		Undergraduate(7) participation on Electronic and Electrical Engineering courses
		
			  Electronic Engineeing Electrical Engineering Electronic/Electrical Engineering 
			 Academic year Number Percentage(8) Number Percentage(8) Number Percentage(8) 
		
		
			 2001–02 21,734 1,42 5,022 0.33 26,756 1.74 
			 2000–01 19,790 133 5,143 0.35 24,933 1.68 
			 1999–2000 18,474 1,28 4,468 0.31 22,942 1.59 
			 1998–99 18,050 1.25 4,567 0.32 22,617 1.57 
			 1997–98 17,828 1.26 4,964 0.35 22,792 1.61 
		
	
	(7) Figures cover all undergraduates studying full and part time courses at UK HE institutions.
	(8) Percentage of all undergraduate enrolments
	Source
	Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA)

Minister for Children

Jimmy Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the responsibilities are of the Minister for Children; what immediate targets she has set; and what funding is available for her Department subsection.

Margaret Hodge: I have responsibility within the Department for Education and Skills for policy on children, young people and families. The creation of the post of Minister for Children in June brought together within the DfES a number of key responsibilities including some from other Government Departments in order to improve the co-ordination of policy on children, young people and families. From September the title of this post was changed to Minister for Children, Young People and Families.
	The accountability arrangements for PSA and supporting targets affected by this change are:
	The transfer from the Department of Health of the PSA target on improving the life chances for children in care together with work on the adoption of looked after children.
	Joint ownership of the PSA target on reducing the under 18 conception rate by 50 per cent. by 2010.
	The Department of Health will retain the PSA target on improving life outcomes for adults and children with mental health problems with DfES having an important role in ensuring input from social care and other services.
	I will also retain responsibilities for the Sure Start targets which aim to ensure that accessible and high quality childcare, early education and other services are available for all young children and families.
	I will be reviewing all targets and structures are now being established within the Department to ensure that our policy ambitions are delivered in the most cost effective manner.

School Noise Reduction

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what his Department is doing to enforce the recommended guidelines in reducing noise in schools; and if he will make a statement.

David Miliband: Acoustic standards in schools have been subject to the Building Regulations, Approved Document E, since 1 July 2003. Approved Document E quotes DfES Building Bulletin 93 as the normal means of compliance with Regulation E4 which applies to schools. Building Bulletin 93, "The Acoustic Design of Schools", can be downloaded from the DfES acoustics website www.teachernet.gov.uk/acoustics and will be published by the Stationery Office (ISBN 0 11 2711057) in November 2003.
	Building Bulletin 93 contains recommendations that also apply to the refurbishment of existing schools which are not subject to Building Regulations. Some aspects of such refurbishment work are subject to the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act as it applies to pupils with hearing impairments.
	Building Bulletin 93 also gives recommendations on noise levels in playing fields and other areas of the school grounds. External noise considerations are subject to Policy Planning Guidance Note 24 and Planning law.

Ofsted

Chris Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the response from HM Chief Inspector of Schools to the hon. Member for Islington, South and Finsbury on 13 June, how many complaints have been made against Ofsted inspectors in each of the last three years for reasons other than their performance as inspectors in connection with Section 10 inspections; and whether de-registrations have subsequently resulted.

David Miliband: This is a matter for Ofsted. HM Chief Inspector of Schools, David Bell will write to my hon. Friend and place a copy of his letter in the Library.

PGCE Citizenship Courses

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to his answer of 18 September 2003, Official Report, column 985W, on Post-Graduate Certificate in Education (Citizenship), how many places (a) have been taken up and (b) were available for PGCE history courses in each year between 2001 and 2003; what percentage of teacher training institutions offer PGCE Citizenship courses; and if he will make a statement.

David Miliband: The table shows the number of entrants to Postgraduate Certificate in Education courses in history and the number of places allocated to institutions in England by the Teacher Training Agency since 2001/02.
	
		
			  Places Entrants(9) 
		
		
			 2001/02 941 922 
			 2002/03 977 982 
			 2003/04(10) 998 n/a 
		
	
	(9) Does not include trainees on undergraduate or employment-based routes.
	(10) The number of entrants to initial teacher training in 2003/04 is not yet available.
	Source:
	TTA
	Currently 13 per cent. of providers of initial teacher training courses in England offer a Postgraduate Certificate in Education course in Citizenship.

School Finance (Essex)

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when he expects to respond to the request for additional financial resources made on 26 September by the Essex Secondary Headteachers' Association; and if he will make a statement.

David Miliband: On 17 July the Secretary of State announced the changes we propose to make to restore stability to school funding in 2004–05 and 2005–06. We are currently working with national partners on the detail of his proposals and the Secretary of State will be announcing the outcome as soon as this work is complete.

Sector Skills Councils

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has made of the trailblazer sector skills councils; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Johnson: Five organisations were licensed as Trailblazer Sector Skills Councils in the spring of last year. A business case for Skill set (the Trailblazer SSC for audiovisual industries) is currently being considered and if accepted will lead to the award of a licence before the end of the year.
	The other Trailblazer Sector Skills Councils; Cogent Plus, Skillfast-UK, Lantra and Skillsmart, are expected, subject to SSDA Board approval to be awarded licences by June 2004.

Sure Start

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what resources were allocated for research for each of the Birkenhead Sure Starts in each of the years since their inception; and how much of the funding has been spent;
	(2)  how much (a) revenue and (b) capital has been allocated to each of the Birkenhead Sure Starts in each year since their inception;
	(3)  how much of the (a) revenue and (b) capital allocation awarded to Birkenhead under the Sure Start programme has been used, broken down by financial year, since 2001–02.

Margaret Hodge: The available information for the three Sure Start local programmes in the Birkenhead area is shown in the following tables. These programmes were approved at different times—Birkenhead North in August 2000, Ferries in January 2002 and Birkenhead Central in January 2003. Information is drawn from the local programmes' delivery 9 plans and Sure Start Unit's finance and performance monitoring IT system. N/A denotes not applicable where year shown is before a programme's inception.
	
		Table 1—Research
		
			  Research Spend (£) 
			 Sure Start local programme 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 
		
		
			 Birkenhead North nil 21,145 18,545 nil to date 
			 Ferries n/a nil 250 nil to date 
			 Birkenhead Central n/a n/a 5,803 nil to date 
		
	
	Note:
	Programmes are advised to spend around 5 per cent. of their Revenue allocation on research. There are no set amounts allocated.
	
		Table 2—Revenue
		
			  Revenue (£) 
			  2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 
			 Sure Start local programme Allocation Spend Allocation Spend Allocation Spend Allocation Spend 
		
		
			 Birkenhead North 394,500 140,868 743,400 745,376 745,000 679,216 745,327 339,749 
			 Ferries n/a n/a 100,000 120,000 550,000 419,648 714,095 163,577 
			 Birkenhead Central n/a n/a n/a n/a 338,000 280,971 745,327 178,759 
		
	
	
		Table 3—Capital
		
			   Capital Spend (£) 
			 Sure Start local programme Total Capital Allocation (£) 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 
		
		
			 Birkenhead North 1,052,000 21,519 63,204 44,598 nil to date 
			 Ferries (11)1,173,031 n/a n/a 17,500 nil to date 
			 Birkenhead Central 1,000,000 n/a n/a 13,000 nil to date 
		
	
	(11) inclusive of irrecoverable VAT
	Note:
	Approval of Capital Spend for two of the programmes has been given in full to date. Birkenhead North has had £1,052,000 and Ferries £1,173,031 approved. Approval is on-going for the Birkenhead Central programme.

Teachers (Essex)

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many full-time secondary school teachers were employed by Essex county council on 1 September.

David Miliband: The information is not available in the precise form requested. The official survey of teacher numbers and vacancies (Form 618g) is conducted annually on the third Thursday in January. At January 2003, 4,960 teachers were employed full-time in maintained secondary schools in the Essex local education authority area.

Teaching Assistants (Leicestershire)

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what the pay rates are for teaching assistants in Leicestershire;
	(2)  what training opportunities exist for teaching assistants in Leicestershire;
	(3)  what assessment he has made of the job content for a teaching assistant in Leicestershire.

David Miliband: Pay, contractual arrangements and job descriptions are matters for local determination: the Government believe that this is the best way of ensuring a flexible system that can respond to local needs and circumstances. Many local authorities, including Leicestershire, have reviewed support staff pay and undertaken job evaluations in the light of the agreement—commonly known as the Single Status Agreement—made in 1997 by the National Joint Council for Local Government Services. I understand that that National Joint Council is in the process of issuing guidance about the grading of school support staff.
	The Standards Fund for 2003–04 contains a grant of £37.45 million for the training and development of support staff and Leicestershire's share of this is £424,542. Responsibility for deciding how to devolve the funding to schools rests with LEAs. The grant can be used for those participating in induction training programme for teaching assistants, developed by my Department, as well as for the professional development of more experienced teaching assistants including course fees for training leading to National Vocational Qualifications. Schools have always been able to use their own budgets to fund teaching assistant training and to 'buy in' or pay for any training available locally.
	The National Agreement on raising standards and tackling workload signed on 15 January 2003 by the Government, local authority employers and school work force unions will improve training and career progression opportunities for support staff and makes clear that we expect their pay to reflect their level of training, skills and responsibilities. Following the Agreement, the Teacher Training Agency has published standards for Higher Level Teaching Assistants and training and assessment for these standards will be rolled out from April 2004.

Tuition Fees

Keith Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of university tuition fees will be paid to the university in advance.

Alan Johnson: We do not expect that any tuition fees will be paid to Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in advance of the academic year for which they are charged. From 2006, students will decide whether they will defer payment until after they graduate, or whether to pay their tuition fees up front. Where a student chooses to defer payment, the Government will pay the tuition fee to the HEI during the academic year for which it is charged. The details of the arrangements for the timing of the payment or payments during the academic year have yet to be finalised.

Tuition Fees

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the (a) maximum and (b) minimum ranges of residual parental income are at which students may be (i) wholly and (ii) partly exempt from tuition fees in 2003–04.

Alan Johnson: For most higher education students, the maximum fee contribution for which they will be liable in 2003/04 is £1,125. Students will be wholly exempt from a contribution to their fees if their parents' residual income is less than £20,970. They will be liable for a partial contribution to their fees if their parents' residual income is between £20,790 and £31,230.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Alstom

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the Government's role in the threatened closure of the Alstom works in Birmingham.

Patricia Hewitt: holding answer 14 October 2003
	My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has met the President of Alstom UK, constituency MPs and trade unions to discuss Alstom's restructuring plans and their impact on the company's operations in the UK . The Government also have a role through its regional agencies in providing the best available help for the individuals who may be affected.

Arms Sales

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much has been spent by her Department in each year since 1997–98 on promoting British military equipment and arms sales to foreign customers.

Mike O'Brien: The Defence Export Services Organisation (DESO) of the Ministry of Defence takes lead responsibility for promoting British military equipment and arms sales to foreign customers. The Department of Trade and Industry does provide some support to defence companies wishing to export where this is likely to produce economic benefit for the UK and complies with export control regulations imposed by the UK. However, it is not possible to separately identify the Department's overall spend on this activity in each year since 1997–98.
	British Trade International, through the Defence Manufacturers Association (DMA), support the presence of UK companies at overseas Exhibitions and Seminars using the Support for Exhibitions and Seminars scheme (SESA) and its predecessor the Trade Fair Support scheme. The amount of grant provided to companies through DMA is as follows:
	
		
			  Grant (£) 
		
		
			 1997–98 67,850 
			 1998–99 707,015 
			 1999–2000 167,832 
			 2000–01 268,592 
			 2001–02 164,089 
			 2002–03 311,934 
		
	
	Note:
	The annual variation in amounts reflects the variation in the number and type of major export events occurring each year.

Asbestos

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much has been spent by her Department and its agencies on (a) asbestos surveys and (b) the management and removal of asbestos since 1 January 2001; and what budget is available to (i) commission asbestos surveys and (ii) manage and remove asbestos from buildings in (A) 2003 and (B) 2004.

Patricia Hewitt: The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) spend on asbestos surveys and on the management and removal of asbestos since 1 January 2001 has been small and the costs for this work are included in the normal operational costs associated with the DTI estate. For 2003 and 2004, there is no specific budget as provision for asbestos surveys and the removal of asbestos from buildings. For those agencies where the Department holds budgetary information, the position is similar.
	Letter from Alison Brimelow to Dr. Vincent Cable
	I am replying to your Parliamentary Question 3978 tabled on 16 September 2003, about how much has been spent by the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry's Department and its agencies on (a) asbestos surveys and (b) the management and removal of asbestos since 1st January 2001; and what budget is available to (i) commission asbestos surveys and (ii) manage and remove asbestos from buildings in (A) 2003 and (B) 2004.
	Of the three properties we administer, only one has any asbestos, and we had a survey done this year costing £1350. As a result we are aware that some remedial work needs to be done. There is no budget provision made for this yet as we are negotiating with the Landlord on the best way to proceed.
	With regard to the other buildings in our portfolio, Concept House was built in 1989/91 and does not contain any asbestos. Harmsworth House was completely refurbished before our occupation and also does not contain any asbestos.
	Letter from Claire Clancy to Dr. Vincent Cable
	I am responding to your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on behalf of Companies House, which is an Executive Agency of the DTI.
	Since 1 January 2001 Companies House has spent £11,500 on asbestos surveys, and £90,724 on the removal of asbestos. No more money has been budgeted to commission surveys as they are now complete. Removal of asbestos in the years 2003 and 2004 will not exceed £50,000 and can be accommodated in the existing budget.

BAC Strikemaster

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when she will reply to the letter dated 9 July from the hon. Member for North Norfolk concerning issues relating to the export of BAC Strikemaster jet aircraft.

Nigel Griffiths: I replied to the hon. Member's letter dated 19 June on 27 June. My Department has no record of having received a further letter from the hon. Member about Strikemaster aircraft.

Construction Industry

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent discussions her Department has had with trade associations in the construction sector regarding the impact of increasing insurance premiums.

Nigel Griffiths: The DTI has regular discussions with various trade associations and umbrella bodies in the construction sector, and is working closely with the trade associations, to produce practical advice and guidance to construction firms on insurance matters.

Consultancies

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many consultancies were commissioned by her Department in the last two years for which figures are available; and what the cost of those contracts was.

Patricia Hewitt: During 2002–03, the Department's recorded expenditure on consultancy was £52 million in respect of some 180 projects. The comparable expenditure in 2001–02 was £55 million. No figures are available in respect of the number of projects commissioned for that year.
	The Department is currently undertaking a review of its consultancy expenditure, with the objective of maximising the value for money obtained from the deployment of consultants through:
	the effective management of consultancies and exploitation of their conclusions;
	more cost-effective procurement practices; and
	the consistent capture of data.

Aggregate Exports

Bob Blizzard: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what percentage of UK marine dredged aggregate is exported to (a) Holland and (b) other EU countries.

Mike O'Brien: The information is not collected in the form requested. However, in the year ending June 2003—the latest quarter for which data are available—sales of sand and gravel in Great Britain amounted to 83,318,000 tonnes, of which 12,451,000 tonnes were marine dredged. Exports of sand to the EU totalled 232,000 tonnes over the same period, or slightly less that 0.3 per cent of the total, of which none was exported to the Netherlands. A further 121,000 tonnes were imported, a proportion of which may have been re-exported. It is not possible to identify exports of sand by source, i.e. whether they were obtained from marine dredging or were land won.

Power Supply

Bill Tynan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment her Department has made of whether (a) electricity demand is likely to surpass 54.4 GW in England and Wales during this winter, (b) gas demand is likely to surpass 450 Mcm during this winter and (c) there is sufficient (i) electricity generation capacity and (ii) gas supply and storage capacity to meet this demand; and if she will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: National Grid Transco reports annually to Ofgem on the outlook for the forthcoming winter. Ofgem published the latest assessment on 14 October 2003. The assessment covers winter peak electricity and gas demand. It also covers electricity generation capacity and gas supply.
	The report is available in the Libraries of the House.
	DTI is working with Ofgem, through the joint energy security of supply working group (JESS) to monitor energy security, specifically taking a forward look and make the conclusions publicly available—allowing market participants to react in good time.

Power Supply

Bill Tynan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent assessment she has made of the proportion of electricity demand in the United Kingdom in (a) 2005, (b) 2010, (c) 2015 and (d) 2020 that will be met by electricity generated using (i) gas and (ii) renewable fuels.

Stephen Timms: The latest provisional DTI energy projections which update those in Energy Paper 68, indicate a share for gas generation of 33 per cent. and 50 per cent. in 2005 and 2010 respectively. For renewables, the shares are 5 per cent. and 10 per cent. respectively. Further updating of these estimates is under way, including estimates for later years. The projections are available at the following website: http://www.dti.gov.uk/energy/sepn/projections.pdf

Environmental Measures

Helen Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to her answer of 17 July 2003, Official Report, column 509W, on environmental measures, what assessment she has made of the economic benefits to UK environmental industries of the markets created by each measure; what methodology she used to carry out each assessment; and where each assessment is published.

Patricia Hewitt: The regulatory impact assessments referred to in my answer of 17 July took account of the costs and benefits to all relevant sectors, and were produced in accordance with best practice, as set out in the Cabinet Office publication "Better Policy Making: A Guide to Regulatory Impact Assessment". All the assessments were published in the corresponding DTI and Defra consultation papers, and placed on the appropriate Departmental website.

EU Emissions Trading Scheme

Jonathan R Shaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment she has made of the impact on industry of liability for the costs of the EU Emissions Trading scheme, with particular reference to the paper industry.

Stephen Timms: holding answer 14 October 2003
	We are currently working on implementing the EU Emissions Trading Scheme. We have already undertaken a draft consultation on different methodologies and a consultation is under way on draft regulations. A consultation on the draft national allocation plan will start in December 2003. Other analytical work is under way. It is not possible at present to calculate the impact on specific sectors while a number of aspects of implementation are still to be agreed and action by other member states to be finalised.

Hawk Contract

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  what measures the Government will take to ensure that end-use undertakings made in relation to equipment or technology licensed for transfer to India as part of the intended sale of 66 Hawk jets to India will be honoured;
	(2)  what conditions will be placed on the end-use of any equipment and technology licensed for transfer to India in relation to the 66 Hawk jets intended for sale to India.

Mike O'Brien: I have been asked to reply. 
	All licence applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria. The stated end-use of the equipment is one factor taken into account when making the assessment.
	The Hawk trainer aircraft are intended solely for training purposes, although they would have limited combat capability as they are fitted with the necessary systems and interfaces to allow them to carry a range of weapons for training for combat.
	Beyond the standard end-user undertaking requirements for export licences (which our Posts overseas will monitor), no specific additional conditions would normally be placed on the end-use of any equipment and technology licensed for transfer to India.
	The Indian Air Force already has a range of other aircraft that are much more suitable for combat purposes, including modern Mirage 2000 and SU-30 aircraft. Although it would be possible for the Indians to convert the aircraft in an operational role, we are confident they are purchasing the aircraft for training purposes to fill a gap between their existing trainer aircraft and their front-line fast jets. The Hawk is to be used to teach Indian pilots to fly fast jets safely.

Iraq

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether components of British manufacture from the two vehicles suspected of weapons of mass destruction production were bought with Export Credit Guarantee Department credits; and if she will make a statement.

Mike O'Brien: holding answer 14 October 2003
	The coalition has not yet made a definitive identification of the vehicles and the components in question. From the information available to date, ECGD has no reason to believe that its cover was given in respect of such components.

IT Industry

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what her policy is on the relationship between the number of work permits granted to overseas applicants to work in the IT industry and vacancy levels and unemployment levels among domestic employees in that sector.

Patricia Hewitt: The government's Sector Advisory Panel for IT meets regularly to assess the system for issuing work permits. The composition of the panel is broad and includes members from representative organisations and contractor groups. This panel advises in the UK's national interest and ensures that we strike the right balance between enabling employers to move skilled staff from within their companies while protecting job opportunities for resident workers. This policy is kept under regular review.

Liverpool John Lennon Airport

Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she was consulted on Royal Mail's proposal to withdraw air freight operations from Liverpool John Lennon airport; and if she will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: holding answer 14 October 2003
	DTI Ministers and officials meet representatives from the Royal Mail on a regular basis to discuss a wide range of issues, including the company's transport review.
	Decisions about the future structure of the company's air freight operations is a matter for the Royal Mail Board. I understand that while the company has proposed the closure of its operations at John Lennon airport, the Communication Workers Union has asked to put forward alternative proposals that could mean the retention of this site. Royal Mail has agreed to consider their proposals before any final decision is made.

National Grid

Bill Tynan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether (a) the continental gas interconnector, (b) the beach terminals, (c) the compressor stations, (d) the National Transmission System and (e) the national control centre in Hinckley rely on power from the National Grid to operate.

Stephen Timms: Yes, but all have back-up arrangements in place.

Post Office Closures

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what consultations she has had with the Post Office about (a) the closures of Crown post offices and (b) the consequences of closing the Crown Post Office at Brondesbury.

Stephen Timms: Decisions on closures of individual post offices are an operational matter for Post Office Ltd., but all such proposals are subject to public consultation under the Code of Practice agreed between Post Office Ltd. and Postwatch. Post Office Ltd's decision to close Brondesbury Crown post office has been taken in the context of its programme to restructure the urban post office network and the need to address the substantial losses made by the Crown office part of the network. I understand from Post Office Ltd. that there are three alternative offices between half and three-quarters of a mile from Brondesbury.

Power Stations

Bill Tynan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many gas-fired power stations are classified as (a) shipper nominated interruptible, (b) Transco nominated interruptible and (c) network sensitive loads.

Stephen Timms: There are 19 interruptible Combined Cycle Gas Turbine stations (CCGTs) in England and Wales. Transco has rights of interruption over all of these CCGTs. The shippers' contractual arrangements are not fully known, but it is thought that in the great majority of cases, they do have interruption rights. Even if they do not, the stations may still be self-interrupted in order to arbitrage between the gas and electricity markets. One of these CCGTs is a Network Sensitive Load, which means that its position within one of the Transco Networks makes it more likely to be interrupted for reasons of local capacity constraints. Another CCGT is in a network sensitive position from an electricity perspective. Based on National Grid Transco's latest information and experience of this station switching fuels when interrupted in the past, there is a high degree of confidence in the station's alternative fuel capability.

Science Research Councils

Michael Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the members of each science research council.

Patricia Hewitt: The following are the names of all members of the seven Research Councils.
	Members of the Seven Research Councils
	BBSRC
	Dr. Peter Ringrose—Council Chair
	Professor Julia Goodfellow—Chief Executive
	Dr. D. Brightman—Self-employed Farm Manager
	Professor H. Dalton—Chief Scientific Officer, DEFRA
	Dr. M. A. Darnbrough—Head of Bioscience Unit at DTI
	Professor R. B. Freedman—Head of Biological Sciences, University of Warwick
	Professor C. A. Gilligan—Professor of Plant Sciences, University of Cambridge
	Mr. J. S. Graham—Head of Rural Affairs Department, Scottish Executive
	Professor K. Gull—Professor of Pathology, University of Oxford
	Professor D. Kell—Professor of Chemistry, UMIST
	Professor TBL Kirkwood—Professor of Gerontology, University of Newcastle
	Professor A. A. Nash—Department of Veterinary Pathology, University of Edinburgh
	Dr. J. M. Padfield—Retired (ex Pharmaceutical Industry)
	Dr. A. Penman—Head of Laboratory, Unilever Research and Development
	DR. C. I. Ragan—Executive Director, Neuroscience Research Europe, Lilly Research Laboratories
	Professor C. A. Tickle—Professor of Life Sciences, University of Dundee
	CCLRC
	Sir Graeme Davies—Vice Chancellor, University of London
	Prof John Wood—Chief Executive CCLRC
	Dr. Derek Chadwick—Director of the Novartis Foundation
	Prof Mike Cruise—Pro-Vice-Chancellor, University of Birmingham
	Prof Graham Davies—Head of the School of Engineering, University of Birmingham
	Mr. Stephen Dexter—Grant Thornton
	Prof John Durell—Head of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manchester
	Prof Julia Goodfellow—Chief Executive BBSRC
	Mr. Peter Gregson—Deputy Vice-Chancellor, University of Southampton
	Prof Ian Halliday—Chief Executive PPARC
	Dr. Richard Henderson—MR.C Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge
	Ms Anne Kensall—Business Adviser
	Prof John Lawton—Chief Executive NERC
	Prof John O'Reilly—Chief Executive EPSRC
	Mr. Philip Ruffles—Rolls-Royce plc
	Prof David Williams—Head of Clinical Engineering, University of Liverpool
	EPSRC
	Professor Dame Julia Higgins—Council Chair
	Professor John O'Reilly—Chief Executive
	Professor John S. Archer, Principal and Vice-Chancellor Heriot-Watt University
	Professor John Chapman, Head of Physics and Astronomy Department, Glasgow University
	Professor Ann Dowling—Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge
	Professor Susan Gibson—Department of Chemistry, King's College London
	Dr. David Grant—Vice-Chancellor Cardiff University
	Dr. Peter Grindrod—Chair of Numbercraft Ltd.
	Mr. David Hughes—Director of Innovation, DTI
	Dr. J. Kennedy—Director Ove Arup and Partners
	Ms Beatrice Leigh—GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals
	Mr. John Loughhead—Alstom plc
	Professor Sir Keith O'Nions—Chief Scientific Adviser, Ministry of Defence
	Dr. Andrew Rickman—Booker Technology plc
	Dr. Martyn Thomas—MTAL (Consultant)
	ESRC
	Frances Cairncross—Chair
	Professor Ian Diamond—Chief Executive
	Professor Alan Alexander—Chair, Scottish Water
	Professor Patricia Broadfoot—Graduate School of Education, University of Bristol
	Professor Andrew Chesher—Department of Economics, University College of London
	Ms Helen Dent—Chief Executive, Family Welfare Association
	Professor Fiona Devine—Department of Sociology, University of Manchester
	Professor Hadyn Ellis—Deputy Vice-Chancellor, University of Cardiff
	Mr. Paul Johnson—Chief Economist, Department for Education and Skills
	Mr. Adair Turner—Vice Chairman, Merrill Lynch (Europe)
	Professor Robin Wensley—Warwick Business School, Warwick University
	Professor Steve Wilks—Department of Politics, University of Exeter
	Professor Sir Alan Wilson—Vice Chancellor, University of Leeds
	Mr. Andrew Winckler—Partner and Chairman, Financial Services Regulatory Practice, Ernst and Young
	MRC
	Sir Anthony Cleaver—Council Chair
	Professor Colin Blakemore—Chief Executive
	Dr. David Armstrong—Department of General Practice, Kings College London
	Dr. Mac Armstrong—Chief Medical Officer, Scottish Executive Health Dept.
	Sir William Castell—Chief Executive, Amersham plc
	Professor Kay Davies—Head of Department of Human Anatomy and Genetics, University of Oxford
	Professor Richard Denton—Professor of Biochemistry, University of Bristol
	Dr. Peter Fellner—Chief Executive Officer, Celltech Group plc
	Mr. Derek Flint—Retired (ex Financial Services Industry)
	Dr. Ruth Hall—Chief Medical Officer, Welsh Assembly
	Professor Ian McLennan—Director of MR.C Centre for Immune Regulation University of Birmingham
	Professor Alan North—Professor of Molecular Physiology at the University of Sheffield
	Professor Sir John Pattison—Director of Research, Analysis and Information, Department of Health
	Professor Genevra Richardson—Professor of Public Law, Queen Mary College, University of London
	Professor Nancy Rothwell—MR.C Research Professor, University of Manchester
	Professor John Savill—Professor of Medicine, University of Edinburgh NERC
	Mr. Rob Margetts—Chairman
	Professor John Lawton—Chief Executive
	Professor Malcolm Anderson—Professor of Physical Geography, and Assistant Director, Institute for Advanced Studies, University of Bristol
	Mr. Chris Andrews—Former Chairman and Managing Director of Rhodia Ltd.
	Professor John Beddington—Department of Environmental Science and Technology, Imperial College
	Professor Valerie Brown—Research Professor in Agro-Ecology, and Director of the Centre for Agri-Environmental Research, University of Reading
	Professor Howard Dalton—Chief Scientific Adviser (CSA), Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA)
	Professor Trevor Davies—School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia
	Professor Michael Depledge—Head of Science for the Environment Agency
	Professor Anne Glover—Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Aberdeen
	Dr. Colin Hicks—Director General of the British National Space Centre, and Director-Space in the Department of Trade and Industry
	Mr. Edwin Jenner—Formerly of AstraZeneca plc
	Mrs. Karen Morgan—Deputy Chairman of WaterAid, Chairman of the University of the West of England, and a Director of Wessex Water
	Mrs. Sara Parkin—Programme Director at Forum for the Future
	Professor Judith Petts—Head of School, School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Birmingham
	Professor David Roberts—Distinguished Adviser at BP Exploration
	Professor David Read—Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield
	PPARC
	Mr. Peter Warry—Chair
	Professor Ian Halliday—Chief Executive
	Professor George Efstathiou—University of Cambridge
	Professor Brian Foster—University of Bristol
	Dr. George Gray—retired
	Mr. David Hendon—Department of Trade and Industry
	Professor John Inkson—University of Exeter
	Professor Dewi Lewis—Amersham plc
	Professor Keith Mason—Mullard Space Science Laboratory
	Professor Chris Sachrajda—University of Southampton
	Professor Anneila Sargent—California Institute of Technology
	Mrs. Judith Scott—British Computer Society
	Mr. David Steeds

Science Research Councils

Michael Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the financial and commercial links with industry of each member of the Science Research Council.

Patricia Hewitt: Details of Research Council members' financial and commercial links with industry are available from each Council's Register of Members' Interests available from their website: Biotechnology and Biological Science Research Council, www.bbsrc.ac.uk; Council of the Central Laboratory of the Research Councils, www.cclrc.ac.uk; Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, www.epsrc.ac.uk; Economic and Social Research Council, www.esrc.ac.uk; Natural Environment Research Council, www.nerc.ac.uk; Medical Research Council, www.mrc.ac.uk; Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council, www.pparc.ac.uk. For the convenience of Members I am placing paper copies in the Libraries of the House. A full list of Research Council members was given in my answer to my right hon. Friends Question No. 132495.

SMEs

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what information her Department has collected regarding the number of small- and medium-sized enterprises that have gone out of business in the past 12 months owing to the high cost of employer's liability compulsory insurance.

Nigel Griffiths: In my discussions with the British Chambers of Commerce, Federation of Small Business, Institute of Directors, CBI SME Council and the Forum of Private Business in the past 12 months, during which time this subject has been raised, they have provided no figures and no specific cases of businesses citing these cases as the sole reason for ceasing to trade. Nor has the DTI been able to source such information elsewhere.
	I have been working with these organisations and the insurers to address issues arising from employer's liability insurance.

South Africa

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many officials from her Department assisted in the negotiations with the National Industrial Participation and the Defence Industrial Participation programmes with South Africa; what their role was in these negotiations; and what posts they held in her Department at the time of the negotiations.

Patricia Hewitt: None.

WTO Conference

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to her oral statement of 17 September 2003, Official Report, columns 861–67, on the WTO Ministerial Conference, what assessment she has made of the role of NGOs in the collapse of the World Trade Organisations talks.

Patricia Hewitt: The NGO community played an important role in the run-up to Cancun and at the WTO Ministerial-Conference. As I said in my statement to the House on 17 September, I warmly welcomed the UK Trade Network participation at Cancun.
	The Government will continue to work with NGOs, and developing country members of the WTO, to ensure that this is a true 'development' round and that trade rules are improved to benefit the world's poorest people.

WTO Conference

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when she will reply in full to the letter from the hon. Member for Totnes dated 24 July 2003 concerning the World Trade Organisation negotiations in Cancun.

Mike O'Brien: A reply was sent out on 15 October 2003.

MINISTER FOR WOMEN

Special Advisers

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Minister for Women what proportion of special advisers working in Government Departments are women.

Douglas Alexander: I have been asked to reply.
	At 14 October, there are 77 special advisers in post of which 23 are women.

HEALTH

Water Fluoridation

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what proportion of the public must be in agreement before water may be fluoridated in their area;
	(2)  how the Government plans to assess local opinion on the fluoridation of water supplies;
	(3)  to what extent local public opinion will be binding on the Strategic Health Authority in relation to water fluoridation.

Melanie Johnson: It is Government policy that no area will be required to fluoridate its water supply unless the local population is in favour. Detailed provision on the local consultations required and the assessment of public opinion will be the subject of regulations to be made under Clause 61 of The Water Bill, currently in Committee before this House.

Accident and Emergency Services

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients admitted to Accident and Emergency in Hull and the East Riding in (a) 2002 and (b) 2003 waited for more than 12 hours before being treated or transferred to a ward.

Melanie Johnson: The NHS Plan set a target for accident and emergency (A&E) to reduce the maximum wait in A&E from arrival to admission, transfer or discharge to four hours by 2004.
	In line with this target from 2001, the Department has collected data on total time spent in A&E from arrival to admission, transfer or discharge. The available figures for Hull and East Yorkshire National Health Service Trusts are shown in table 1.
	
		Table 1. Total time spent in A&E Departments, Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust
		
			 Year Quarter Total attendances at major A&E Percentage of patients who spent less than4 hours in A&E Number of patients spending more than4 hours in A&E 
		
		
			 2003–04 1 26,147 91.4 2,237 
			 2002–03 4 23,919 84.6 3,695 
			 2002–03 3 23,082 74 6,000 
			 2002–03 2 24,313 64 8,827 
		
	
	The Department collects data on waiting times in A&E post decision to admit patients to a hospital ward. The figures for Hull and East Yorkshire NHS Trusts for the two years ended March 2002 and March 2003 are shown in table 2.
	
		Table 2. Admissions through major A&E Departments, Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust
		
			 Year Quarter Number of patients admitted through major A&E Patients not placed in bed ina ward within4 hours of a decision to admit Percentage 
		
		
			 2003–04 1 6,249 205 3.3 
			 2002–03 4 6,411 349 5.4 
			 2002–03 3 6,051 252 4.2 
			 2002–03 2 6,068 249 4.1 
			 2002–03 1 6,243 260 4.2 
			 2001–02 4 5,812 288 5.0 
			 2001–02 3 3,976 119 3.0 
			 2001–02 2 4,745 40 0.8 
		
	
	Source:
	Hospital Activity Statistics, Department of Health

Breast Cancer

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what measures other than advising women of lifestyle changes his Department is taking to prevent breast cancer;
	(2)  what discussions he has had with other Departments on possible (a) environmental and (b) other causes of breast cancer.

Melanie Johnson: It is not clear exactly what causes breast cancer, but it is thought that there are many risk factors, some already well established and some still being investigated. The main risk factors are being female and increasing age. The majority of other risk factors are linked to lifestyle. Key prevention measures include improving dietary intake, including increasing fruit and vegetable consumption, increasing physical activity and staying at a healthy weight.
	About five per cent. of all breast cancer cases (fewer than 2,000 per year) may be caused by breast cancer genes. The National Institute for Clinical Excellence is developing a clinical guideline on the classification and care of women at risk of familial breast cancer in primary, secondary care and tertiary care. The guideline is expected to be published in February 2004.
	The Government's White Paper, "Our Inheritance, Our Future—Realising the Potential of Genetics in the NHS", was published in June 2003. The Department has collaborated with Macmillan Cancer Relief to develop a model approach to genetic cancer services for people at risk of, or concerned about, familial cancer. The model is patient-centred, describing a continuum of advice and care involving primary care, local cancer services and specialised genetic and cancer services. A tendering exercise has begun to pilot all or certain aspects of the model. It is envisaged that there will be six evaluated pilot sites in England to inform the future development of cancer genetic services, as envisaged in the National Health Service Cancer Plan. Bids for pilot project funding must be submitted by 31 October 2003.
	Women should be breast aware at all times. The Government promote the overriding importance of teaching women to be breast aware, knowing that 90 per cent. of breast cancers will be found by women themselves. The breast awareness five point code is as follows:
	know what is normal for you;
	look and feel;
	know what changes to look for;
	report any changes without delay; and
	attend for breast screening if aged 50 or over.
	The Department, together with Cancer Research UK, produces a leaflet entitled "Be Breast Aware". The leaflet is widely available from general practitioner's surgeries and breast screening units. 1.5 million copies were printed in 2002–03.
	Officials from the Department have had discussions with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs regarding possible links between environmental chemicals, in particular, organochlorine pesticides, and breast cancer.
	In 1999, the independent Committee on Carcinogenicity of Chemicals in Food Consumer Products and the Environment (COC) considered this issue and concluded that lindane and other organochlorine pesticides were not a significant risk factor in breast cancer. The remit of the COC is to advise Government Departments on all aspects of the carcinogenicity of chemicals. The COC is currently reviewing new data on this issue.
	The COC has also considered the possible association between alcoholic beverages and breast cancer. A statement was issued in 1995, indicating that there was not enough evidence to conclude that the ingestion of alcoholic beverages was a cause of breast cancer. The COC is reviewing new data on this issue with a view to updating its statement next year.
	There have been allegations of an association between environmental radiation and breast cancer and these are being considered by the independent Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment. The remit of this Committee is to advise Government Departments on the health effects of environmental exposure to radiation.

Call Centres

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department plans to outsource call centre work to premises outside the United Kingdom.

Rosie Winterton: The Department has no plans to outsource call centre work for which it is responsible to premises outside the United Kingdom.

Cancelled Operations

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many operations in Hull and the East Riding in (a) 2002 and (b) 2003 were cancelled for non-clinical reasons; and what proportion of admissions these figures represent in each case.

Melanie Johnson: The information requested is shown in the table.
	
		
			 RWA Hull and EastYorkshire HospitalsNHS Trust Number oflast minute cancellations for non clinical reasons in the quarter Number of elective admissions Cancellations as a percentage of elective admissions 
		
		
			 2002 2001–02 Q4 301 13,893 2.2 
			  2002–03 Q1 189 14,329 1.3 
			   Q2 202 15,771 1.3 
			   Q3 237 14,966 1.6 
			 2003  Q4 249 15,515 1.6 
			  2003–04 Q1 199 15,146 1.3 
		
	
	Source
	Hospital Activity Team, QMCO

Criminal Records

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the impact on voluntary organisations concerned with the delivery of personal care to elderly and vulnerable people of the cost of Criminal Records Bureau checks.

Paul Goggins: I have been asked to reply.
	A Regulatory Impact Assessment which assesses the impact on different sectors of the recent fee increase was placed in the Library on 5 June.

Criminal Records

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he had with the National Care Standards Commission (NCSC) on the Care Home Regulations in place since 1 April 2002, with particular reference to Criminal Records Bureau checks on staff to be employed in the care home sector; what directions have been given to the NCSC; and what representations have been received by his Department.

Stephen Ladyman: Ministers and officials meet regularly with the National Care Standards Commission (NCSC) to discuss a wide range of matters, including the regulation of care homes and Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks. I last met with representatives of care homes organisations on 24 September 2003. In the last few months I have received 125 letters from right hon. and hon. Members and five letters from members of the public on CRB checks for the care home sector. I have given no directions to the NCSC on this matter.

Criminal Records

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what factors underlay the decision to bring into effect the Care Home Regulation, from 1 October, that stipulates that all new staff should have a Criminal Records Bureau check completed before starting work; what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the interim guidance on this matter from the National Care Standards Commission; what assessment he has made of the effect of enforcing the regulation on the long-term care sector; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Ladyman: Since 1 April 2002, all new staff in care homes have been required to obtain a satisfactory Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) check as part of their pre-employment checks. The impact of this requirement was assessed as part of a Regulatory Impact Assessment.
	However, in the light of the initial difficulties experienced by the CRB in dealing with the level of demand for checks, in June 2003 the National Care Standards Commission (NCSC) issued interim guidance on how to deal with recruitment of care home staff, while steps were taken to improve the CRB's performance. The intention of the guidance was to enable care homes to recruit staff while ensuring residents were protected.
	Following significant improvements made at the CRB, the NCSC rightly decided to look again at its guidance. Where CRB clearances are not in place, the NCSC will continue to apply its discretion on the use of its enforcement powers on a case by case basis, where this is appropriate.
	The Department has not made an assessment of the effectiveness of the NCSCs interim guidance. However, we are aware that provider organisations welcomed the guidance and their recent concerns were not with its operation, but its withdrawal.

Care Homes

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many (a) residential care home and (b) nursing home places have been lost in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available in Gloucestershire;
	(2)  if he will make a statement on the provision of (a) nursing home and (b) residential home care in Gloucestershire.

Stephen Ladyman: In the period 1993–2001, there was an overall increase in the number of places in residential and nursing care homes in Gloucestershire. In 1993 there were 2,854 residential care and 3,228 nursing care home places totalling 6,082. This is compared to 4,241 residential care and 2,966 nursing care places totalling 7,207 in 2001.
	Source:
	Department of Health stats.
	Figures for later years have been collected by the National Care Standards Commission.

Child Health Statistics

Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children in each year since 1997 have been diagnosed with (a) eczema, (b) asthma, (c) AIDS and (d) glaucoma.

Stephen Ladyman: Information on eczema, asthma and glaucoma is not collected centrally in the form requested.
	Hospital episode statistics collect data on admissions. Table 1 shows hospital admissions—this does not represent numbers of children diagnosed with these conditions, as a child may have more than one admission within the year, or may not be admitted at all.
	
		Table 1—Primary diagnoses (ICD10 various codes) eczema, asthma, glaucoma. Count of finished in-year admission episodes. Age on admission 0–17 years. NHS hospitals England—1997–98 to 2001–02
		
			  1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 
		
		
			 Eczema 3,655 3,840 3,853 4,184 3,792 
			 Asthma 32,430 29,384 26,317 23,910 25,324 
			 Glaucoma 942 1,092 1,116 1,208 1,227 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Admissions are defined as the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. Please note that admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year.
	2. The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 14 (seven prior to 2002–03) diagnosis fields in the Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data set and provides the main reason why the patient was in hospital.
	3. Grossing—figures have not been adjusted for shortfalls in data (ie the data are ungrossed).
	Source:
	Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Department of Health.
	Information is collected centrally by the Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre on the numbers of children diagnosed with HIV/AIDS in England. Data from 1997 is shown in table 2.
	
		Table 2—Year of HIV/AIDS diagnosis aged 14 or younger at diagnosis
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 1997 77 
			 1998 95 
			 1999 80 
			 2000 101 
			 2001 78 
			 2002 102 
		
	
	Note:
	Numbers will rise as late reports are received.
	Source:
	Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre, data to the end of June 2003.

Dental Access Centres

Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients were treated in the last year in each dental access centre.

Rosie Winterton: The table shows the number of patients treated in each dental access centre during 2002–03.
	
		
			 Wave Dental Access Centre Number of patients treated 
		
		
			 1 Cornwall 21,708 
			  Shropshire 9,112 
			 2 Bromley 792 
			  Manchester (Kath Locke) 1,481 
			  Gloucestershire 9,916 
			  Wiltshire 7,220 
			  Wolverhampton 4,544 
			  Worcestershire 10,442 
			 3 Peterborough 3,763 
			  Hereford 11,405 
			  West Norfolk and Wisbech 6,113 
			  North Staffordshire 12,725 
			  Oxfordshire 9,478 
			  South Staffordshire 10,518 
			  Hull and East Riding 9,519 
			  Lincolin 3,394 
			  Avon 7,256 
			  Portsmouth and South East Hampshire 2,156 
			  Easy Access 5,892 
			  Egremont 1,562 
			  Somerset 4,828 
			  Surrey 10,927 
			  Walsall 3,671 
			  Warrington 11,149 
			  North and East Devon 9,585 
			  Warwickshire 2,107 
			  Macclesfield 5,016 
			  Plymouth 11,323 
			  Morecambe Bay 3,657 
			  North Mersey DAC 3,639 
			  Brighton 1,213 
			  Milton Keynes 4,938 
			  Leicester 1,896 
			  Solihull 3,710 
			  Victoria Mill 54 
			  Newcastle 859 
			  Slough 5,641 
			  Barnet Enfield and Haringey(12) 65 
			  Bury and Rochdale(12) 3,624 
			 4 Bury and St. Edmunds and W S 2,613 
			  Scarborough 3,431 
			  Nottingham 2,237 
			  Northampton 1,832 
			  North Norfolk 1,425 
			 Total  248,436 
		
	
	(12) Dental Access Centre opened within the 2002–03 financial year.

Diagnostic and Treatment Centres

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which Government agencies are involved in schemes to offer patients choice in their NHS treatment.

John Hutton: Nine choice pilot schemes are in operation. Local schemes covering a wide range of specialties are operating in Berkshire, Dorset and Somerset, Greater Manchester, London, Trent, Surrey and Sussex and West Yorkshire. In addition, we have a national coronary heart disease choice pilot and an ophthalmology choice pilot operating across the south of England. Strategic health authorities, primary care trusts and national health service trusts are involved in the planning and delivery of choice pilots. NHS Direct has also provided support to three pilot schemes that are operating with call centre based patient care advisers.

NHS Direct

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what call statistics have been collated for the East Riding NHS Direct call centre in Willerby for the last 12 months.

Rosie Winterton: In the last twelve months (October 2002—September 2003), NHS Direct Tees, East and North Yorkshire handled 257,347 calls. For the corresponding time period in the previous twelve months (October 2001—September 2002), NHS Direct Tees, East and North Yorkshire handled 229,961 calls. This represents an 11 per cent. increase in call volumes.

NHS Direct

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what role NHS Direct is expected to have in Government schemes to offer patient choice.

John Hutton: NHS Direct is currently involved in three pilot schemes to offer choice of hospital to national health service patients. NHS Direct's existing infrastructure and expertise is being used to support call centre based patient care advisers. Strategic health authorities are currently planning for the national roll-out of choice of hospital and booking. This will include their plans for the role and provision of telephone services to support booking and choice.

NHS Direct

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what schemes to offer patients choice in their NHS treatment will be operating in conjunction with NHS Direct.

John Hutton: A number of pilot schemes are currently offering patients choice over the hospital in which they receive their treatment. NHS Direct is involved in pilots in London, Greater Manchester and Surrey and Sussex, using its existing infrastructure and expertise to support call centre based patient care advisers. The experience and learning of the choice pilots will support the national roll-out of patient choice.

Efexor

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children under the age of 18 years have been prescribed the anti-depressant Efexor in each of the past five years.

Stephen Ladyman: Information is not available in the form requested. The table shows the estimated number of prescription items of venlafaxine (Efexor being a branded form) dispensed in the community in England for children between 1999 and 2002. Children are defined as 0 to 15-year-olds and those aged 16 to 18 in full-time education.
	On 19 September an expert group of the Committee on Safety of Medicines advised that venlafaxine should not be used in children and adolescents under the age of 18 years for the treatment of depressive illness. Advice was also issued on stopping treatment with venlafaxine.
	
		Estimated number of prescription items of all venlafaxine dispensed in the community in England for children between 1999 and 2002
		
			  Number 
		
		
			  
			  
			 1999 5,000 
			 2000 6,000 
			 2001 9,000 
			 2002 13,000

Efexor

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many reports the Medicines Control Agency has received of suicides attributed to Efexor in each of the last five years; and how many yellow card reports the Medicines Control Agency has received about Efexor in each of the last five years.

Melanie Johnson: The number of adverse drug reactions received by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) under the yellow card scheme in respect of venlafaxine (Efexor) over the last five years is shown in the table, together with the number of reports of completed suicide.
	
		
			  Number of UK reports for venlafaxine (Efexor) Number of reports of completed suicide for venlafaxine (Efexor) 
		
		
			 1998 589 2 
			 1999 444 3 
			 2000 349 3 
			 2001 303 1 
			 2002 316 1 
		
	
	The number of reports received via the yellow card scheme does not directly equate to the number of people who suffer adverse reactions to drugs for a number of reasons, including an unknown level of under-reporting. It is important to note that the reporting of a reaction does not necessarily mean it was caused by the drug and may relate to other factors, such as the patients underlying illness or other medicines taken concurrently.
	As with all medicines, the MHRA and the Committee on Safety of Medicines are keeping the safety of venlafaxine under continuous review. The summary of product characteristics for venlafaxine advises prescribers about the risk of suicide that is inherent in patients with depressive illness.

Energy Use Targets

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the voluntary targets for energy use in NHS capital schemes have been made mandatory; what progress his Department has made in revising the NHS carbon dioxide standard of heat insultation; if it is his intention to bring the revised NHS carbon dioxide standard into line with the current British Standard for heat insulation (BS 5422, as revised in 2001); and whether any further upward revision of BS 5422 resulting from this review will be followed without delay by an equivalent upward revision of NHS carbon dioxide.

Melanie Johnson: I refer the hon. Member to the response I gave on Monday 6 October 2003, Official Report, column 1289W.
	In that reply, MES CO2 is purely a reference number for the NHS Estates model engineering specification on thermal insulation and does not relate to carbon dioxide.

Epsom and St. Helier Hospitals

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the number of people admitted to Epsom and St. Helier hospitals via the accident and emergency departments in each of the past 24 months.

John Hutton: The table shows the total number of admissions to Epsom and St. Helier National Health Service Trust via its accident and emergency (A&E) department, in the latest 24 months for which figures are available.
	
		RVR Epsom and St. Helier NHS Trust—In-year admissions via Accident and Emergency Department by month of admission NHS hospitals 2000–01 and 2001–02
		
			 Month of admission In-month admissions 
		
		
			 2000  
			 April 1,390 
			 May 1,274 
			 June 1,300 
			 July 1,343 
			 August 1,266 
			 September 1,170 
			 October 1,326 
			 November 1,354 
			 December 1,352 
			 2001  
			 January 1,417 
			 February 1,228 
			 March 1,140 
			 April 1,419 
			 May 1,469 
			 June 1,441 
			 July 1,446 
			 August 1,355 
			 September 1,372 
			 October 1,446 
			 November 1,499 
			 December 1,502 
			 2002  
			 January 1,523 
			 February 1,311 
			 March 1,081 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Admissions are defined as the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. Please note that admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year.
	2. Grossing—figures have not (yet) been adjusted for shortfalls in data (i.e. the data are ungrossed).
	Source:
	Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Department of Health.
	The table implies an increasing trend in admissions via A&E for this trust.

Eye Tests

Ann Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many free sight tests were given to (a) pensioners and (b) other people in (i) Kirklees and (ii) England in each year since 1997.

Rosie Winterton: The table shows the number of national health service sight tests paid for in Calderdale and Kirklees Health Authority (HA) for 1997–98 to 2002–03. Figures for the number of sight tests by constituency or age are not collected centrally. The table shows the number of sight tests where "patient aged 60 and over" was given as the eligibility category and all other sight tests.
	Eligibility to NHS sight tests was extended to those aged 60 and over from 1 April 1999. There was an increase of 2.4 million sight tests between 1998–99 and 1999–2000 in England. It is fair to assume that the vast majority of this increase was due to newly eligible people aged 60 or over obtaining NHS sight tests.
	However, some patients aged 60 and over will be eligible for sight tests for other reasons as well (for example, on income grounds). The classification for such patients will depend on the patient and the practitioner. The increase in the number of sight tests for those over 60 may therefore reflect an increasing awareness of the eligibility of over 60s.
	
		General Ophthalmic Services: Number of sight test paid in Calderdale and Kirklees HA and England for the year's 1997–98 to 2002–03 -- Thousand
		
			  Eligibility categories 
			  Patients aged 60 and over Other categories Total number of sight tests 
		
		
			  Calderdale and Kirklees 
			 1997–98 — — 88.1 
			 1998–99 — — 87.9 
			 1999–2000 41.0 73.0 113.9 
			 2000–01 46.0 68.5 114.4 
			 2001–02 44.1 72.7 116.8 
			 2002–03 49.1 68.5 117.6 
			 
			 England
			 1997–98 — — 6,991.3 
			 1998–99 — — 6,992.3 
			 1999–2000 3,301.4 6,098.0 9,399.4 
			 2000–01 3,753.3 5,813.8 9,567.1 
			 2001–02 4,013.0 5,794.4 9,807.4 
			 2002–03 4,135.7 5,526.3 9,662.1 
		
	
	Note:
	Data on eligibility is derived from a 2 per cent. sample.

Food Products (Health Claims)

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer to question ref. 130174, on health claims about food products, what estimate he has made of the cost to a manufacturer of making such an application.

Melanie Johnson: No such estimate has yet been made. The Food Standards Agency is currently consulting on the proposed regulation on nutrition and health claims, and preparing an assessment of the potential impact, including application costs, on industry. The consultation package specifically requests information from manufacturers to inform that assessment.

Good Friday Agreement

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures have been taken in the last 12 months to promote co-operation in health matters through the east-west dimension of the Good Friday Agreement.

Christopher Leslie: I have been asked to reply.
	Strand Three of the Belfast or Good Friday Agreement identified health as one of the possible issues for discussion within the British-Irish Council. Work focusing on telemedicine and e-health is being taken forward by the Isle of Man. A working group has met seven times since February 2001 and members have visited a number of telemedicine applications either being piloted or in everyday use. This work has been particularly useful to those administrations with the challenge of delivering health and social care in rural and remote communities.

GPs/Dentists

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many practising NHS (a) dentists and (b) general practitioners there were in Southend West in (i) 1997 and (ii) 2002.

Stephen Ladyman: Figures for general dental services (GDS) dentists by primary care trust (PCT) were not collected prior to 2002. The number of GDS dentists in Southend on Sea PCT at 31 December 2002 was 54. This figure includes principals, assistants and vocational dental practitioners. Figures for hospital and community health services dental staff are shown in the table.
	
		Hospital and community health services dental staff -- As at 30 September
		
			   1997 2002 
		
		
			 Southend Community Care NHS trust RDK 8 (13)— 
			 Southend Healthcare NHS trust RAJ 11 11 
		
	
	(13) Not available.
	Source:
	Department of Health Medical and Dental Workforce Census
	Information on numbers of general practitioners by PCT have been collected centrally since 1999. Figures for 1999 and 2002 are shown in table 2.
	
		Table 2: General Medical Practitioners for Southend on Sea PCT -- Numbers (headcount)
		
			  Southend on Sea PCG 4KH89 Southend on Sea PCT 5AK 
		
		
			 1999   
			 All Practitioners(14) 85 (16)— 
			 of which:   
			 Unrestricted Principals and Equivalents (UPEs)(15) 84 (16)— 
			 March 2002   
			 All Practitioners (16)— 85 
			 of which:   
			 Unrestricted Principals and Equivalents (UPEs) (16)— 83 
		
	
	(14) All Practitioners include UPEs, Restricted Principals, Assistants, GP Registrars, Salaried Doctors (para 52 SFA), PMS Other, GP Retainers and Flexible Career Scheme GPs
	(15) UPEs include GMS Unrestricted Principals, PMS Contracted GPs and PMS Salaried GPs.
	(16) Not available.
	Note:
	Data as at 1 October 1999, 31 March 2002
	Source:
	Department of Health General and Personal Medical Services Statistics

Health Services (Battersea)

Martin Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the impact on the Battersea constituency of his Department's health policies and actions since 2 May 1997.

John Hutton: Detailed information on the impact of departmental policies nationally is set out in the Department of Health annual reports. A copy of the most recent report "Department of Health—Government Expenditure Plans 2003/2004" is available in the Library and on the Department's website.
	The impact of policies is not examined by constituency and statistics collected centrally by the Department are not collected on a constituency basis.
	My hon. Friend's constituency falls within the geographical area covered by Wandsworth Primary Care Trust (PCT), St. George's Healthcare National Health Service Trust and the former Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth Health Authority (HA).
	
		Allocations to Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth HA
		
			  Allocation Cash increase Real terms increase 
			 Period £000 £000 Percentage £000 Percentage 
		
		
			 1997–98 309,318 10,104 3.38 4,039 1.35 
			 1998–99 322,343 12,806 4.14 4,179 1.35 
			 1999–2000(17) 422,995 25,270 6.35 14,953 3.76 
			 2000–01 455,914 35,177 8.36 24,058 5.72 
			 2001–02 498,646 42,445 9.30 30,283 6.64 
			 2002–03 563,125 49,830 9.80 36,215 7.12 
		
	
	(17) Figures for 1997–98 and 1998–99 are not comparable to the later figures, as these are for Hospital and Community Health Services (HCHS) only.
	Note:
	From 1999–2000 allocations have included HCHS, QMS cash limited and prescribing components (2002–03 saw the addition of HIV/Aids and QMS non cash limited components).
	Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth HA and the NHS trusts within it have also received additional funding for certain policies. This includes:
	£6.6 million for accident and emergency modernisation in 2000–01.
	Nationally, in 2000–01 recurrent investment of £50 million was available for the improvement of cancer services. For 2001–02, an additional £255 million is available nationally for cancer care. Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth HA has received £300,000 for the investment of cancer equipment. This has already been delivered and is now in use.
	£4.5 million, £453,000 and £406,000 to reduce waiting lists and times in 1998–99, 1999–2000 and 2000–01 respectively.
	£2.25 million to expand critical care services in 2000–01.
	£3.3 million and £2.9 million to deal with winter pressures in 1998–99 and 2000–01.
	£228,000 for heart disease services in 2000–01.
	£35,000 invested into dentistry in 2000–01.
	I am informed by South West London Strategic Health Authority that in 2002–03, the Wandsworth PCT's overall allocation included the following earmarked funding for certain policies (there has been no earmarked funding in 2003–04):
	£470,000 for mental health.
	£376,000 for coronary heart disease.
	£477,000 for cancer.
	£348,000 for information management and technology.
	£523,000 for primary care.
	£2.7 million for capacity.
	One of the public's principal concerns about the NHS has been waiting times. Waiting list information for St. George's is shown in the table.
	
		Patients waiting for elective admission: St. George's Healthcare NHS Trust 
		
			 Month end Totalwaiting list Patients waiting over nine months Patients waiting over12 months 
		
		
			 March 1997 7,185 777 311 
			 May 2003 6,623 329 0 
		
	
	Source:
	Department of Health form KH07.
	
		Waiting times for first consultant out-patient appointment:St. George's Healthcare NHS Trust
		
			  GP written referrals 
			Patients seen  Patients still waiting 
			 Quarter Total Percentage seen within 13 weeks More than 13 weeks More than 26 weeks 
		
		
			  
			  
			 Q4 1996–97 15,508 89 931 602 
			 Q4 2002–03 12,599 72 757 5 
		
	
	Source:
	Department of Health form QM08
	Information regarding staffing within Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth has been placed in the Library.

Hospitals (Leicestershire)

Stephen Dorrell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients were treated in Leicestershire hospitals in each year since 1997–98.

Stephen Ladyman: The tables show the number of out-patients and in-patients treated in Leicestershire hospitals since 1997–98.
	
		Out-patient Activity
		
			 Name First attendances seen Subsequent attendances seen 
		
		
			 2002–03   
			 Charnwood and North West Leicestershire PCT 15,172 25,020 
			 Leicester City West PCT 580 4,000 
			 Hinckley and Bosworth PCT 9,296 59,170 
			 South Leicestershire PCT 354 480 
			 University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust 175,758 456,121 
			 Total 201,160 544,791 
			
			 2001–02   
			 Hinckley & Bosworth PCT 7,828 47,018 
			 University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust 187,426 462,721 
			 Total 195,254 509,739 
			
			 2000–01   
			 Leicestershire and Rutland Healthcare NHS Trust 38,399 95,687 
			 University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust 161,329 416,068 
			 Total 199,728 511,755 
			
			 1999–2000   
			 Leicester General Hospital 27,757 85,546 
			 Leicester Royal Infirmary 101,379 227,477 
			 Leicestershire and Rutland Healthcare NHS Trust 36,611 94,044 
			 GlenfieId Hospital 26,480 85,010 
			 Total 192,227 492,077 
			
			 1998–99   
			 Fosse Health; Leicestershire Community 35,413 58,022 
			 Leicester General Hospital 26,591 83,077 
			 Leicester Royal Infirmary 96,116 234,485 
			 Leicestershire Mental Health Service 6,728 43,765 
			 Glenfield Hospital 30,204 75,862 
			 Total 195,052 495,211 
			
			 1997–98   
			 Leicester General Hospital 26,598 80,148 
			 Leicester Royal Infirmary 92,317 239,958 
			 Leicestershire Mental Health Service 5,669 42,512 
			 Glenfield Hospital 28098 74,596 
			 Total 152,682 437,214 
		
	
	
		In-patient Activity
		
			 Name 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 
		
		
			 Leicester General Hospital 45,618 48,967 50,993   
			 Leicester Royal Infirmary 103,127 111,319 113,818   
			 Glenfield Hospital 22,101 25,723 27,469   
			 Leicestershire Mental Health Service 2,253 4,207
			 Fosse Health; Leicestershire Community 9,482 9,392
			 Leicestershire and Rutland Health Care   14,427 7,810 9,607 
			 University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust180,940 198,878 
			 Total (Leicestershire HA) 182,581 199,608 206,707 188,750 208,485 
		
	
	Notes:
	Admissions Grossing:
	Figures have not been adjusted for shortfalls in data (i.e. the data are ungrossed)
	Trust Mergers:
	On 1 April 1999, Leicestershire and Rutland Healthcare NHS Trust was formed from a merger of Fosse Health NHS Trust (which provided community health services) and Leicestershire Mental Health Services NHS Trust.
	On 1 April 2000, University Hospitals of Leicester was formed through a merger of the three acute hospital trusts in Leicestershire—those trusts were Leicester Royal Infirmary NHS Trust, Leicester General Hospital NHS Trust, and Glenfield Hospital NHS Trust.
	Source:
	Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Department of Health

Housing Benefit

Paul Truswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he has taken to ensure that people with learning disabilities are not deprived of housing benefit as a result of their accommodation being registered under the Care Standards Act 2000.

Stephen Ladyman: This is a matter for the Department of Work and Pensions.

Hypertension

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress the Government are making towards their target on hypertension.

Melanie Johnson: High blood pressure is addressed through the national service framework (NSF) for coronary heart disease, which identifies the importance of prevention, detection and effective treatment of high blood pressure.
	National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidelines for the management of hypertension in primary care to be published in February 2004, and the new general medical services contract, will further support national health service action to tackle high blood pressure.
	It is also essential that individuals across the population be made aware of the risks associated with high blood pressure and the importance of regular testing. The Department has contributed to the funding of the Blood Pressure Association's national blood pressure testing week in September 2002 and again this year. This voluntary screening event offers people the chance to visit temporary blood pressure testing stations in order to check their own blood pressure numbers and find out more about high blood pressure.
	The Department, working jointly with the Food Standards Agency, has called on industry to take a lead in reducing salt in processed foods and together will lead a salt stakeholders meeting to highlight the role of all sectors including industry health and consumer bodies.
	Wider initiatives, such as five-a-day, to increase fruit and vegetable consumption and the recently formed, cross-government activity co-ordination team to increase mass participation in physical activity and sport, also have the potential to reduce the risk of high blood pressure in individuals.

Influenza Vaccinations

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will fund a scheme to offer influenza vaccinations to employees of large organisations on their work premises; and if he will make a statement.

Melanie Johnson: The Department's policy for recommending influenza vaccination is to protect those most at risk from serious illness should they catch influenza.
	If employees of companies are in the recommended risk group to be vaccinated they can receive their flu vaccination from their general practitioner free of charge. Otherwise it is a decision for individual companies as to whether or not they offer their employees influenza vaccination under an occupational health scheme.

Influenza Vaccinations

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to extend the provision of free influenza vaccinations to citizens under 65; what assessment he has made of the cost of extending provision; and if he will make a statement.

Melanie Johnson: Departmental policy is determined following recommendations from the Joint Committee on Vaccinations and Immunisation (JCVI). This is an independent group of experts, which reviews all current research on the subject of immunisation and its recommendation is based on reducing morbidity and mortality among the population.
	Based upon current scientific research, the JCVI recommends that people aged 65 years and over and those aged under 65 years of age in certain clinical risk groups benefit most from being immunised against influenza.
	This advice is kept under regular review.

IVF Treatment

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the draft NICE guidance on IVF treatment.

Melanie Johnson: The Department commissioned the National Institute for Clinical Excellence in July 2001 to produce a clinical guideline for National Health Service fertility services. The guideline will cover primary, secondary, and tertiary care, including in vitro fertilisation treatment.
	A draft guideline was issued to a stakeholder group for consultation on 2 June 2003. A second draft was published for public consultation on 26 August.
	Publication of the final document is expected in February 2004.

Licensing of Medicines

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will give the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency powers to require pharmaceutical companies to provide all available data and reports on products submitted for licensing.

Melanie Johnson: The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), already has the necessary powers to require pharmaceutical companies to provide all available data and reports when submitting an application for product licensing.
	The Medicines for Human Use (Marketing Authorisation Etc.) Regulations 1994 require companies to make applications in accordance with the relevant European Community legislation, including Directive 2001/83/EC on the Community code relating to medicinal products for human use. All information which is relevant to the evaluation of the medicinal product concerned must be included in the application, whether favourable or unfavourable to the product.

NHS Compensation Payments

John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much compensation was paid to patients and relatives by the NHS in each year since 1990.

Rosie Winterton: This information is not held centrally.

NHS Dental Registration (Children)

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children in Hull and East Riding were registered with an NHS dentist on (a) 1 September 2002 and (b) 1 September 2003.

Melanie Johnson: The table shows the number of children registered with a general dental services (GDS) dentist in the Hull and East Riding area for 31 August 2002 and 2003.
	
		Number of children registered with a GDS dentist in the Hull and East Riding Area, at 31 August 2003
		
			  2002(18) 2003 
		
		
			 Hull and East Riding HA(18) 79,056 — 
			 East Yorkshire PCT — 21,564 
			 Yorkshire Wolds and Coast PCT — 14,270 
			 Eastern Hull PCT — 14,712 
			 West Hull PCT — 24,668 
		
	
	(18) In October 2002, responsibilities for dentistry were moved from health authorities (HAs) to primary care trusts (PCTs).
	Note:
	Registrations lapse if patients do not return to their dentist within 15 months. The registration figures for children therefore exclude those who have not been to their GDS dentist within the past 15 months. The figures also exclude children who receive dental treatment from other national health service dental services, including dental access centres.

NHS Dentists

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of children were registered with an NHS dentist in each primary care trust in the last year for which figures are available.

Rosie Winterton: At 30 June 2003, 6.7 million children were registered with a general dental service (GDS) dentist in England, 60.4 per cent. of the population of children. Information on the percentage of the population and of children registered with a dentist in each strategic health authority area and primary care trust (PCT) area by region at 30 June 2003, has been placed in the Library.
	Primary care trusts have little influence over the provision of general dental services in their area under the current statutory arrangements. Proposals in the Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Bill will give PCTs a duty to secure the provision of primary dental services. The proposed changes will help underpin a modernised high-quality primary dental service provided through contracts between PCTs and dental practices properly integrated with the rest of the national health service. With these new responsibilities will go the £1.2 billion financial resources currently held centrally.
	Registrations lapse if patients do not return to their dentist within 15 months, and so the registration figures exclude patients who have not been to their GDS dentist within the past 15 months. The figures also exclude patients who receive dental treatment from other NHS dental services including dental access centres.

Otitis Media

Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of children diagnosed with otitis media have parents who smoke.

Melanie Johnson: This information is not held centrally.

Paediatric Continence Services

Patsy Calton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  whether his Department has completed an audit of whether the guidance "Good Practice in Continence Services" has improved paediatric continence services;
	(2)  what assessment his Department has made of how the children's national service framework will improve services for children with continence problems;
	(3)  what assessment his Department has made of how many children in England suffer from (a) nocturnal enuresis, (b) daytime wetting and (c) constipation and soiling.

Stephen Ladyman: Good Practice in Continence Services was issued by the Department in April 2000 and provides guidance to primary care trusts (PCTs) on continence services. This includes that PCTs should have specialist continence services in place, which provide patients with an individual assessment of their needs. Provision of these services in England is a matter for PCTs, which are responsible for determining the level of services required to meet the needs of their local populations.
	The children's national service framework (NSF) will set out standards covering a broad range of services, including the management of common childhood conditions. Whilst few specific conditions will be covered, the standards are likely to cover what support should be available to children and their parents in managing a wide range of conditions and problems, including enuresis and soiling. The NSF will emphasise the promotion of evidence-based clinical guidelines and a number of examples of good practice in a range of different areas.
	Information on the prevalence of these common conditions in childhood is not collected centrally.

Private Operations

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people classed as self pay undertook operations in the private sector in each year since 1997, broken down by type of operation.

John Hutton: The Department of Health does not collect information on the number of patients having operations carried out in the private sector, nor on the source of funding for those operations.

Rheumatoid Arthritis

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his response to the Adjournment Debate on rheumatoid arthritis of 17 July 2003, Official Report, columns 537–42, what the evidential basis was for his statement that postcode prescribing of anti-TNF therapy is now rare.

Stephen Ladyman: Implementation of the National Institute of Clinical Excellence drug appraisals in the national health service has had an impact in reducing postcode prescribing. More patients are now able to get the drugs they need. The Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Alliance report appears to support this, as almost two-thirds of the rheumatologists surveyed reported no problems. Anti-TNF drugs should help approximately 15,000 people. The manufacturers of these drugs estimate that around 9,000 patients are already benefiting.

Sexual Health

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans his Department has to introduce a national service framework for sexual health.

Melanie Johnson: The Government have no plans to introduce a national service framework for sexual health. The Government have already published the national strategy for sexual health and HIV in 2001 and has outlined progress and plans in the response to the Health Select Committee's report on sexual health, published in September 2003.
	This recognises the value of developing and spreading good practice and identifying recommended standards for sexual health and HIV. Recommended standards for HIV treatment and care were published on 6 October this year and similar work is under way for sexually transmitted infections, reproductive health and psychosexual services.

Smoking

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what steps his Department is taking to encourage other Government Departments and agencies to become smoke-free;
	(2)  what plans the Government have to bring in legislation to control smoking in the workplace;
	(3)  what guidance the Government give to employers regarding smoking in the workplace;
	(4)  what plans he has to introduce a code of practice on smoking in the workplace in (a) England and (b) Wales;
	(5)  whether he plans to ban smoking on government premises.

Melanie Johnson: The White Paper, "Smoking Kills", states that smoke-free places are the ideal. We will continue to encourage employers and the managers of public places to introduce smoke-free policies.
	An employer already has a duty, under Section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, to
	"ensure so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all his employees", and the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 require that
	"rest rooms and rest areas shall include suitable arrangements to protect non-smokers from discomfort caused by tobacco smoke".
	Guidance and advice on protecting people from second-hand smoke and on introducing smoke-free policies is available from the Health and Safety Executive and the Department in the form of leaflets and website material.

Psychologists (South Essex)

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many psychologists were employed by South Essex Mental Health and Community Care NHS Trust on September.

Stephen Ladyman: South Essex Mental Health and Community Care National Health Service Trust was replaced by South Essex Partnership NHS Trust in April 2002. The number of psychologists employed by South Essex Partnership NHS Trust in September 2003 has not been published. Figures for September 2002 are shown in the table.
	
		NHS hospital and community health services: Qualified clinical psychologists employed by the South Essex Partnership NHS Trust(19) as at 30 September 2002
		
			   Headcount 
		
		
			 RWN South Essex Partnership NHS Trust 31 
		
	
	(19) The services provided by South Essex Mental Health and Community Care NHS Trust, as at 30 September 2002, were provided by South Essex Partnership NHS Trust.
	Source:
	Department of Health Non-medical Workforce Census.

Stroke Services

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what action his Department is taking to accelerate the spread of information on functional electrical stimulation techniques for the rehabilitation of stroke sufferers;
	(2)  what steps his Department is taking to raise awareness of functional electrical stimulation techniques for the rehabilitation of stroke sufferers;
	(3)  how many NHS trusts provide functional electrical stimulation as a treatment for stroke sufferers.

Stephen Ladyman: Functional electrical stimulation (FES) is available only in specialist centres where there is an interest in the procedure. It requires physiotherapists who have specialist training in the technique supported by specialist medical physicists. The forthcoming National Clinical Guidelines for Stroke from the Royal College of Physicians states that FES should not be used on a routine basis and that it should only be considered for a very select group of stroke patients as determined by local protocols. We do not know how many national health service trusts provide FES as a treatment for stroke.

Stroke Services

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many stroke physicians there were in (a) 1998 to 1999 and (b) 2002 to 2003.

John Hutton: The Department does not collect data on stroke physicians; a number of specialties are linked with the treatment of patients with strokes. The main specialties are geriatric medicine, neurology and rehabilitation medicine but it is not possible to say how many of the physicians within these specialties specialise in the treatment of strokes.
	The table shows the number of hospital medical staff in geriatric medicine, neurology and rehabilitation medicine from 1998 to 2003.
	Between September 1997 and June 2003, total consultant numbers in geriatric medicine, neurology and rehabilitation medicine increased by 380 (37 per cent.).